


Just Getting By

by Tenukii



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Boyfriends, Boys In Love, Crushes, First Dates, First Kiss, First Love, First Time for Everything Fest, Fish Puns, Fishing, Frenemies, Halloween, Halloween Costumes, M/M, Mistaken for Being in a Relationship, Nightmare Before Christmas References, Prom, Promises, School Dances, Trick or Treating, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-01
Updated: 2018-03-14
Packaged: 2019-03-25 08:54:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 103,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13830753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tenukii/pseuds/Tenukii
Summary: When Poe finds out that his crush Kylo isn't going to their high school Valentine's Day dance, he offers to go as Kylo's date.  To everyone's surprise, Kylo accepts, and soon he and Poe fall hard for each other.  Their relationship deepens throughout the rest of their time in high school.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story combines what used to be several shorter stories into one long saga. I began it before details about the characters' backgrounds came out, so things like Poe's family situation don't conform to canon.

Ever worry that it might be ruined, and does it make you want to cry?  
When you’re out there doing what you’re doing, are you just getting by?  
Tell me, are you just getting by?

Where there is desire, there is gonna be a flame.  
Where there is a flame, someone’s bound to get burned,  
But just because it burns doesn’t mean you’re gonna die.  
You’ve got to get up and try.

-P!nk, “Try”

\--

“I _hate_ Valentine’s Day.”

“Hmm?  Why?”  Poe Dameron glanced over at his little brother.  B.B. was glaring out of the passenger window of Poe’s car, arms folded, as Poe drove them to school.

“It’s _stupid_.”  The fifth grader had a cardboard mailbox of Valentines between his feet—he’d asked to give out ones with cars on them this year—and he kicked at it.

“You spill those all over my car, and you’re picking them up,” Poe warned him.  “I guess you guys _are_ a little old to be having a class party, but just think about all the cookies and candy you’ll get to eat!  By the time you’re a junior like me, you don’t get parties in school.”

“Yeah, but _you_ don’t have to give out stupid Valentines to a bunch of stupid _girls_.”

Poe hid a smile, thinking that in a year or two, girls might not seem so stupid to B.B.  “I thought you liked your cards.  Mom got you the car ones, right?”

“Yeah, but I gotta give them _away_.  Maybe someone else will be giving them out too, so I’ll get one to keep.”  B.B. cheered up a little.  “Poe, do _you_ have a Valentine?”

“Nope.  Free and single, buddy, that’s the way to be!”

B.B. was quiet a minute; then he asked, “Rey’s not your Valentine?”  Poe started to laugh, but he quickly held it back when he looked at the intent expression on his little brother’s face.

“No,” he assured B.B., “we’re just friends.”

“Is she _Finn_ ’s Valentine?”

Poe tried not to get exasperated, since there was apparently an important matter hinging on all the questions.

“Rey’s not anybody’s Valentine, as far as I know,” Poe insisted.  “Why?  You’re not trying to find me a girlfriend, are you?”

“Ugh, _no_.”  B.B. wrinkled his freckled nose in disgust.  “If you had a girlfriend, you’d hang out with _her_ all the time, and I’d never get to see you.”

“But I hang out with Rey already, _and_ Finn.  The three of us are just friends, buddy, like. . . like the Three Musketeers.”

“Three Caballeros,” B.B. corrected automatically.  He’d been watching a lot of Disney cartoons lately.  “You’re José, and Finn is Panchito, and Rey is Donald, because she’s funny when she gets mad.”

“Don’t let _Rey_ hear you say that, or it won’t be so funny anymore.  Anyway, what’s all this about Rey?” Poe prompted.  B.B. scuffed the toe of his sneaker against the cardboard box; then he reached in and pulled out an envelope slightly bigger than the others.

“Will. . . will you give this to Rey?  And _don’t look at it_.”  He turned his eyes, so dark brown they were nearly black, on his older brother with a glare.

“Sure, buddy.  And I won’t look, I promise.”  Poe took the card and stuck it in the pocket of his shirt.  “So you want Rey to be _your_ Valentine, hunh?”

“No,” B.B. retorted.  “I just. . . had a card left over, s’all.”

“Okay then.”  Poe decided not to tease him; he remembered being that age too.  _And having a crush never gets easier, either_ , he thought.

Poe dropped B.B. and his cardboard mailbox off in front of the elementary building of the private school they both attended, then drove around back to the student parking lot.  It was pretty warm for February, and a few students were standing outside for their last minutes of freedom before the bell.  Poe didn’t see any of his own friends, though, so he went on in to his locker.  As he gathered his books for his first class, Poe heard his name being called.  He looked up to see Finn and Rey approaching him.

“Hey guys.”  Poe grinned at them.  “We still on for tonight?”  Rey nodded, although Finn looked a bit unsure.

“You sure they’ll let us in as a, uh, threesome?” Finn asked.  “Usually a date is just two people. . . .”

“They have to,” Rey declared.  “Otherwise, it’s discrimination.  Just like they have to let in gay couples.”  She paused.  “Besides, if Principal Organa’s going to make stupid rules like you can’t get in to a Valentine’s dance without a date, she should expect to have those rules exploited.”

Poe shrugged as he closed his locker.  “Fair enough.”

“I still don’t know why you didn’t just get your own date,” Finn told him.  “You could have had your pick— _everybody_ likes you.”

“What if my pick was Rey?” Poe challenged, although he was smirking.  “What then?”

Finn gave him a (mostly) mock glare, until Rey said primly, “You’re assuming I would have said yes.”

“ _Wrecked_ ,” crowed Finn, while Poe pretended that the comment had wounded his ego.  Truth be told, he really _could_ have had a date easily enough, but not from anyone he particularly cared about dating.  It just made more sense to go with his two best friends.

“Oh, Rey, I forgot.”  Poe reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out the envelope from his little brother.  “B.B. wanted me to give you this.  I think it’s a Valentine.”

“Aww, that’s sweet of him.”  Rey took the envelope and opened it.  She read the card inside, which had a plain red heart on the front.  “ _Awwww_.”

“What?  What’s it say?” Finn asked, trying to look over her shoulder.  Rey shielded the card from him, then slid it back into the envelope.

“None of your business.”  She smiled at Poe.  “Tell him thank you.”  
  
“Sure,” Poe nodded, although he kind of wanted to see what it said too.

The warning bell rang, signaling they had three minutes to get to homeroom.  Finn gave the other two a mock salute and headed off for his room while Rey and Poe went to theirs.  They both sat on the second row by choice—not _too_ eager to be there like the tall, preppy blonde in front of Poe, but not acting like slackers either.  _That_ role was quite adequately filled by the boy who stalked in at the last possible moment before the final bell rang.  Poe smiled at him—a tall, long-haired kid who always wore black—but just got a hostile glare in return.  Rey rolled her eyes as the boy went to the back of the room and slouched into a desk in the corner.

“I don’t know why you bother being nice to Ben,” Rey whispered to Poe.  “He’s such a jerk.”

“Don’t let him hear you call him ‘Ben,’” Poe returned, mostly to avoid addressing the rest of her statement.

“Why?  It’s his name.”  Rey rolled her eyes again then sat back in her chair and fell silent before their homeroom teacher caught on and scolded them for talking.  Poe hoped that would be the end of it, but ten minutes later, when homeroom was over and some of the class got up to change rooms, Rey picked right up where she had left off.  She and Poe both had their first class, pre-calculus, in that same classroom, although today Poe wished he had an excuse to get away from her.

“Seriously, why does everyone call him by his Internet nickname anyway?” Rey murmured.  She glanced back at the boy in question.  He had pre-cal with them too.

“Because he told us to.  Rey, I know you’re new around here, but you’ve been in school with him for six months now,” Poe hissed.  “You’ve seen how Kylo acts when he doesn’t get his way.”

“He acts like a little bitch.  So what?” Rey persisted.  Poe cringed a bit at her pronouncement, but well. . . she wasn’t wrong.  “Just because he’s the principal’s son doesn’t mean someone shouldn’t call him out on it.  Why does everyone put up with him?”

“It’s not because he’s Principal Organa’s son.”  The blond girl in front of Poe turned around and arched a carefully-penciled eyebrow at Rey.  “You really think we care about that?”

Rey gave her a deadpan look.  “As a matter of fact, yes.  You’re still angling to be valedictorian next year, right, Phasma?”  Phasma—whose real name was actually Phoebe Masterson, so at least _her_ nickname made some sense—narrowed her eyes at the other girl.

“I don’t need the principal to like me to accomplish _that_ ,” Phasma retorted.  “My GPA is all that matters.”

“Yeah, so why _do_ you hang out with ‘Kylo’ sometimes?”  Rey made air quotes around the nickname.

“He’s actually very smart,” Phasma returned, “and he can be fun.  Occasionally.”  She looked back at Kylo and frowned.  “Not today, apparently.  He’s pissed about something.”

Poe had kept quiet; he didn’t like getting involved in arguments, especially arguments between girls.  But now, looking over Phasma’s pretty, if rather severe, face, he asked, “Are you going to the dance with him tonight?”

“What?  No.”  Phasma turned her cool gaze on him.  “I’m going with Hux.”

“The SGA president.  You’re _so_ not angling for anything,” Rey said sarcastically.  Phasma glared at her again then looked back at Poe.

“Why?  You’re not trying to find a last-minute date, are you?” Phasma asked him.  “Because you’re cute and all, but you’re not my type.  If you were, I’d dump Hux right this minute.”

Poe felt himself blush as he muttered, “ _No_ , I wasn’t asking you out.  I just wondered.”  Phasma gave him a critical, appraising look then finally turned back around to face the front of the room.  A moment later, as their teacher started class, Rey slipped a note to Poe.  
  
“You’re not her type because her type is JERK,” it read.  Poe grinned.

\--

After class, Kylo waited until most of the other students had left before getting up.  He would probably be late to Mr. Ackbar’s biology lab, but he didn’t especially care.  Ackbar was close friends with Kylo’s mother, so annoying him would actually be sort of a bright spot in what was otherwise a rotten day.

Phasma left as soon as the bell rang.  Good, even if she did glance back at him as she walked out.  Kylo knew they’d been talking about him, her and Rey and Poe, and he didn’t feel like knowing what they said.  Phasma was all right, sometimes, but she could also be nosy, especially on Valentine’s Day.  Especially when there was a dance that night.

As Kylo slung his backpack over one shoulder, he eyed Poe and Rey who were standing near the door, talking.  _Leave, leave, leave,_ he thought at them, but they didn’t budge.  Rey annoyed him precisely because she didn’t take any shit from him (or from anyone else, for that matter).  She had just transferred in at the start of the school year, yet somehow she had been immediately swept into the social circle of the most popular guy in the entire school.  Just like Finn, Finn who had for years hung around with Hux, Phasma, and occasionally Kylo, only to be suddenly best friends with Poe once Finn decided to ditch them.

In only a few months, Poe, Rey, and Finn had become an inseparable triangle, and they were even all going to that damned dance together.  All three of them, like a _menage à tois_ or something.  Kylo would have died before he suggested something like that to Phasma and Hux.  Even if that meant he didn’t have a date and therefore couldn’t get in, despite the fact that his mother was making him attend.  It was the kind of thing that just seemed to happen with his mother: her making him do something even if it violated her own rules.  Apparently, she took it for granted that just because _she_ had been popular as a teenager, her son wouldn’t have trouble getting a date.  Or that her son wouldn’t have trouble even asking someone on a date.

Or that her son wouldn’t have a crush on another boy who was so popular he could have any girl, and probably half of the guys, in school as a date if he wanted, and he apparently _didn’t_ want a date since he was going with his two best friends instead, and if Poe and Rey didn’t get away from the door so Kylo could leave the room, he was going to _throw something._

_Finally_ , they moved, Rey holding her math book and notebook to her chest and smiling at something Poe was saying.  Kylo followed them out at a discreet distance then ducked past them to get to his next class.

\--

At lunch, Finn told Rey and Poe about the fireworks they had missed because they took chemistry instead of biology.  Kylo had been late to class, and not for the first time, which resulted in a scolding from the ruddy-complexioned teacher, Mr. Ackbar.  That would have been the end of it, since Ackbar was rather easy-going. . . except Kylo had exploded.

“I mean, I’ve seen him mad before, but he was _mad_ ,” Finn chuckled around a mouthful of school cafeteria pizza.  “He must’ve already been pissed off before he got in there, or something.  He just started screaming at poor old Ackbar and nearly knocked a desk over.  Ackbar sent him to the principal, and she gave him detention this afternoon.”  Finn was by now laughing so hard, he had to put the pizza down to recover.  “Getting detention from your own mom!  That’s gotta _suck_.”

“C’mon, Finn, it’s not _that_ funny,” Poe said.  “Yeah, it’s Kylo’s own fault, but detention on a Friday, _and_ it’s Valentine’s Day. . . it _does_ suck.”

“You’re too nice for your own good, bro,” Finn sighed, wiping a tear of laughter from his eye.

“Kylo deserved it,” Rey said to Poe.  “And he was rude to you already today—why are you sticking up for him?”

“I-I’m not,” Poe protested.  “I mean, I’ve been in arguments with him before.  Yeah, he can be a jerk and a bully.  But maybe he’s got. . . I dunno, social anxiety or something.  Maybe there’s a reason.”

Rey sighed, “I guess you’re right.  But so is Finn—you _are_ too nice for your own good.”

\--

By the end of the day, Poe had received three anonymous Valentines in his locker.  All seemed to be from girls, judging from the handwriting, the heart and flower stickers, and the smell of perfume coming off of one of them.  Poe couldn’t help being flattered, but none of the cards was particularly exciting to him.  He stuck them in his pre-cal book and started for the parking lot.  B.B. was going home with a friend for dinner, so Poe took his time instead of hurrying to pick up his little brother.  The dance didn’t start until seven, and Poe was thinking about heading to Starbucks for a while to get the weekend’s math homework out of the way early.

Then he passed the wide double doors to the library, where afternoon detention was held.  Poe stopped, looked down at his pre-cal book, then glanced back at the doors.  In spite of how Kylo had glared at him that morning, Poe kept thinking about what Phasma had said: _He’s actually very smart, and he can be fun._   Finally, Poe turned back and went in the library.

Kylo was sitting at one of the large, hardwood tables in the center of the room, lined on either side by rows of bookshelves.  He was scowling—his default expression, it seemed—and he was alone.  No one else was crazy enough to be studying in the library on a Friday afternoon, and detention was usually only supervised by the school secretary checking in every few minutes.

When Poe came in, Kylo looked up.  For an instant, he quit glaring, taking on a surprised look instead.  Then he regulated his expression and scowled down at the table once more.  Poe was tempted just to turn around and leave, but he reminded himself that he was the guy too nice for his own good.

“Hey,” Poe said.  Kylo was sitting at the middle of the table, so Poe sat down at one end.

“What’re _you_ doing here?” Kylo growled.  He didn’t raise his head but did cast his eyes down toward Poe’s end of the table.  “Come by to make fun of me?”

“What?  No!”  Poe blinked at him.  “Why would you think that?”

“Hux already has.  Why else would you be in here?”

“To do my homework,” Poe replied, at the same time wondering why Hux would be such a jerk.

“On a Friday afternoon?  I mean, I knew you were perfect, but not _that_ perfect.”  Kylo was looking at Poe like he was some kind of alien.

“I-I just wanted to get it out of the way,” Poe muttered; then they both fell silent when they heard the secretary’s footsteps approaching outside.  Poe smiled at him when he peeked in the doors, but at the same time, he was wondering, _Perfect?  What does he mean by that?_

“Anyway,” Poe went on after the secretary was gone, “I want to be able to enjoy myself tonight.”

Kylo made a noise that sounded like “hmph,” but his expression wasn’t quite as hostile as before as he said, “I heard you were going with Rey _and_ Finn.  All three of you.”

“Yeah.”  Poe opened his pre-cal book to at least make a pretense of thinking about homework.  He had forgotten about the secret-admirer Valentines until Kylo glared at those too.

“You got all those today?”  When Poe nodded, blushing a little, Kylo went on, “Then why’re you going to a dance with your _friends_?  You could have gotten a real date.”

“Not with anyone I’d want to go with,” mumbled Poe.  He was starting to wish he hadn’t come in the library at all, but at the same time, at least Kylo was talking to him.

“Are you kidding?”  Kylo looked down at the table again and rocked his chair on its back legs.  He gripped the edge of the table with his long, pale fingers, and Poe noticed he had black polish on both of his ring fingernails.  He jerked his eyes away from Kylo’s hands to stare at his face when the other boy muttered, “ _Anybody_ would want to go out with you.”

“You. . . really think so?”  Poe felt his heartbeat speed up a little.  Kylo just shrugged his broad shoulders and kept looking at the table.  Poe gave his math book a precursory glance then gave up on pretending to be interested in it.  “Who are you going with?” he asked instead.

This time, Kylo was the one to blush.  Poe watched, fascinated, as the white skin over his cheekbones soaked up the pink color.

“I’m not,” Kylo muttered.

“Not what?  Not going?”

“Nope.”  Kylo let go of the table, and the front legs of his chair came down on the floor again with a bang.  “Mom thinks I am.  She’s trying to make me, but I don’t have a date, so I’m gonna leave the house and just ride around the whole time.”  As he stared at the other boy, Poe tried and failed to imagine deceiving his own mother that way.

“Won’t she find out?” Poe finally asked.  “I mean, the chaperones will probably notice if you’re not there, since you’re the principal’s kid.”

Kylo shrugged again and said, “I’ll worry about that later.  Mom’s already pissed at me for bitching at Ackbar, so it won’t matter.  Just another reason for her to hate me.”

“Oh come on, your own mother doesn’t _hate_ you.”  Being a teenager himself, Poe was well acquainted with hyperbole, but Kylo seemed to be overdoing it with the drama.  When the larger boy didn’t respond, Poe thought back to something else Kylo had said.  “Uh. . . why don’t you have a date?  Don’t you want to go?”

“Why should I?” Kylo snapped.  “It’s a stupid school dance.”

“Yeah, but your friends are going.”  Poe realized that probably wasn’t the best thing to say, since it wasn’t clear that Hux and Phasma really _were_ Kylo’s friends.  Poe hurried on, “And I mean, they say this is the best time of our lives, right?  You’ll regret it later if you miss out on things.”

“You’re such a dork,” Kylo accused. . . but he looked at Poe with what _might_ have been the trace of a smile.

“Come on, find yourself a date and go,” Poe coaxed.  “That way, you won’t get in more trouble with your mom, and maybe it’ll be fun.  And if not, you can stand around in the dark and listen to music.  Because that’s what I imagine you do with your time anyway.”  This time, Kylo really did smile a little, although he hid it quickly.

“Well. . . yeah, although not the kind of music they’d play at a _dance_ ,” he grumbled.  “And I’m not gonna find a date _now_.  It starts in like, three hours.”  He turned back to the table and drummed his fingers on it.  Poe watched his fingers, eyes drawn to the single painted nail on each hand.

“I’ll be your date.”  The words came out of Poe’s mouth before he even knew he was thinking them.  Of course, it was what he’d wanted all along, ever since the dance was announced two weeks ago, but he hadn’t actually intended to suggest it.

“What?”  Kylo was staring at him.  Poe stared back, rather horrified at what he had blurted out.  Then he noticed Kylo’s face getting even redder than before.  “But. . . but you’re going with Rey,” Kylo stammered.  “And Finn.”

Poe hesitated then plunged ahead.  “S-so, they can still go together.  This way, all of us can get in.”

“I. . . .”  Kylo swallowed and licked his lips.  Poe found himself staring at the other boy’s mouth as Kylo asked, “You’re. . . you’re _sure_?”

Poe nodded.

“. . . Okay.”  Kylo looked down at his hands then back up at Poe.  “I. . . what time do you want me to come pick you up?”

“Oh. . . .”  Poe had assumed they would just meet at the school that night, like he, Rey, and Finn had planned to do.  “Quarter to seven, I. . . I guess?  Is that okay?”

“Yeah.  I’ll need your address.”  
  
“Oh, yeah.  Here.”  Poe pulled a piece of paper out of his math notebook and wrote his address on it.  He hesitated, pencil wavering over the paper, then added his phone number before shoving the paper in Kylo’s direction.  “I—I put my phone number on it.  In case something comes up.”

“Okay, I’ll text you so you have mine.  Uh, once I get out of here.”  At the questioning look Poe gave him, Kylo smirked.  “You’ve never had detention before, have you?  You have to turn in your phone while you’re in here.”

“Oh.  Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”  Poe closed his pre-cal book on the now forgotten Valentines he’d received.  “I’d better go.  I need to get something to eat before I get ready.”

“My time’s almost up anyway,” Kylo commented; then he eyed Poe’s textbook.  “You didn’t get your homework done.”

“Oh. . . no.  I guess not.”  Poe gave the book a sheepish look.  “I’ll. . . see you tonight then?”

Kylo didn’t look at him as he muttered, “Yeah.  I’ll see you.”

\--

Poe didn’t really believe that Kylo was going to text him, but he got a message about half an hour later.  It just read “This is Kylo,” and the other boy didn’t respond when Poe texted back a smiley emoji, but at least it was something.

After dinner, Poe took a shower and got dressed.  He didn’t know how to tell Finn and Rey that he had a date after all—and especially not who it was—so he waited until almost six before finally texting them to go in without him if they got there first, because he was going to the dance with someone.  He decided to ignore all the texts they sent in response, demanding to know who his mystery date was.

As six o’clock came and went, Poe started to worry.  What if Kylo changed his mind?  What if he stood Poe up?  Kylo _had_ acted like a jerk in the past, and he _had_ been glaring at Poe just that morning.

_If he doesn’t show, it’s no big deal,_ Poe told himself.  _I can probably still make it in time to meet up with Rey and Finn, and if I don’t. . . well, it’s just a silly little dance._   Yeah, missing the dance wouldn’t upset him too much. . . but he couldn’t tell himself it wouldn’t hurt his feelings if Kylo didn’t show up.

At 6:40, Poe was at his front door, peering out one of the narrow windows on either side.  His phone buzzed for about the hundredth time, and he checked it reflexively.  Not Kylo, Finn.  Again.

By 6:43, Poe had convinced himself that Kylo wasn’t coming.

Then, at exactly 6:45, Poe saw headlights turning in to his driveway.

\--

Kylo had driven by Poe’s house three times before turning in.  For one thing, he got there early and needed to kill a few minutes, and for another, he wasn’t sure he could do it.  What if it was all a joke, and Poe was going to make fun of him—or worse, what if Poe had already left and was standing him up?  Kylo really thought Poe was too nice to do something like that, just like he hadn’t really thought Poe had turned up in the library to laugh at him.  But maybe Poe had changed his mind about the whole thing.  Why would he want to go to a dance with Kylo anyway?

_He was just trying to be nice to me,_ Kylo thought. _He probably never thought I would agree._

But then it was 6:45, and Poe’s house was right there, and Kylo had promised he’d be there.  He turned in, and before he even had the car in park, the door to the house was opening, and Poe was coming outside.

“Hey!”  Poe smiled at Kylo as he got into the passenger seat.  His smile was white and perfect, just like his dark brown, wavy hair was perfect, and his warm brown eyes were perfect, eyes that always managed to look like they were half-closed, as if Poe were sleepy or trying to be seductive.  Not that he’d have to try very hard.

_Christ, he even smells good,_ Kylo thought.

“Hey,” he muttered as he turned back to the steering wheel and put the car in drive.

“I like your car,” Poe said, looking around at the interior.  “It’s way nicer than mine.”

“Thanks.”  Kylo tried to think of something to say as he drove them to the school, but nothing suitable came to mind.  He wanted to tell Poe how nice he looked—and he _did_ , wearing a jacket with his navy blue shirt tucked into slim-fitting black jeans that showed off his legs—but saying so might be implying Kylo thought this was more than what it was: a mercy date.

_I really should have told him no,_ Kylo thought.

Poe didn’t say anything else until they got to the school.  Kylo parked, and they both got out and looked over at the gym, where all the school dances took place.  A couple kids were standing around outside, but almost everyone had already gone in.  Kylo hung back by his car when Poe started to walk toward the gym.  The smaller boy stopped and looked back at him.

“Something wrong?” Poe asked.

“You know they’re going to make fun of you,” Kylo said.  He hadn’t really meant to say it, but it was one of many things making him anxious.

“Who is?”  Poe turned to face him.

Kylo shrugged.  “Everybody.”

“For what?”  A faint smile curled Poe’s mouth.  “For going to a dance with another guy?”

“Maybe.  But I meant for going with _me_.”  Kylo leaned against the car door and tried his best to glare.  He must have succeeded, for Poe suddenly scowled at him.

“Oh really?” Poe asked in a scathing tone.  “More like they’re gonna make fun of _you_ for going with _me_.”  Kylo blinked, and Poe went on, “That’s what’s really bugging you, right?  What _your_ friends are going to say about you being desperate.”

“Hunh?”  Kylo clenched his jaw as the word “desperate” sank in, and he stepped away from the car, gripping his hands into fists.  “I’m not _desperate_.  This was all _your_ idea, remember?  I didn’t even want to go!”

“Then why’d you say yes?” Poe retorted.  “You think you’re so cool, so what’re you doing here with a dork like me?”

“A dork, you?  You’re like, the most popular guy in our whole class!” Kylo spat at him.  “You think you’re doing me some huge favor—well, you’re not!  Just because you’re cute and everyone likes you doesn’t mean I want your pity!”  Poe’s mouth had opened, probably to level another insult at Kylo, but now it just stayed like that for a second.

Finally, Poe mumbled, “Whoa, whoa, slow down.  First of all, _you_ called me a dork this afternoon.  I didn’t come up with that all on my own.”

“I did?”  Kylo tried to remember.  He wanted to stay mad at Poe, but it was difficult.  “Oh.  I. . . guess I did.  But I didn’t mean it like _that_ kind of dork.”

Poe’s mouth twitched, as if he were trying not to smile.  “Okay, whatever.  Second.  You’re so full of yourself, you think I’m here because I feel _sorry_ for you?  You’re taking the emo act a little too far to assume I’d waste my Friday night on a mercy date.”

Kylo felt his face get hot to hear Poe use the exact phrase he had been thinking of.  “I didn’t say—”

“Shut up, I’m not finished,” Poe interrupted him. . . and then he _did_ smile.  “Third.  You really think I’m cute?”

Kylo shut his mouth so hard, his teeth clacked together.  He hadn’t said _that_. . . had he?  . . . Yeah.  Yeah, he had.  _Damn_ it.

When Kylo didn’t answer, Poe took another step toward him, still smiling.

“Well?  Do you?”

Kylo pressed back against his car again and stammered, “Y-yeah.  So?  _Everybody_ thinks you’re cute.”

Poe ignored the last half of Kylo’s reply and said, “I think you’re cute too.”

A million responses came to mind, but all Kylo could manage was a choked, “Really?”

“Yeah,” Poe nodded.  “You look nice.”  Kylo’s mind was so blown, he had to look down to remember what he wearing: a black sweater in deference to the weather, which had turned chilly after the sun set.

“So do you,” he muttered when he looked back up at Poe.

“Then are you coming in with me?  No one’s going to make fun of either of us, I promise.  Not if we both look so nice.”  Poe was grinning, but Kylo still wasn’t convinced—that no one would make fun of them, that is.  Poe _had_ , however, convinced him to go inside to the dance.

\--

To be continued


	2. Chapter 2

As he and Kylo walked into the gym, Poe felt a little bit like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in the old Christmas special: “She thinks I’m cuuuuuute!”  He managed to keep it to himself, but he kept hearing Kylo’s deep voice in his mind, saying it in the midst of yelling at Poe: _Just because you’re cute. . . ._

None of the other kids was paying attention when they came in together.  Poe was secretly relieved; he really _wasn’t_ so sure no one would make fun of them, and he didn’t want Kylo getting mad.  The two faculty chaperones who were checking everyone at the door for both dates and appropriate dress gave them odd looks but didn’t comment.  As Rey had pointed out, to say anything about a same-sex couple would be discrimination, and what’s more, to say anything about Principal Organa’s son would be bad for their job security.

Kylo glared at the two men, and when the boys were past, he grumbled to Poe, “Ugh, Gunray and Haako.  I can’t stand them.  You ever had Gunray for anything?”

“No.”  Poe glanced back at the two, who now seemed to be bickering with each other about something.  “He teaches poli-sci, right?  I’m taking that next year.”

“Yeah, and I had him for government a few years ago.  Haako’s his teaching assistant, and he’s not so bad on his own.  But together. . . .”  Kylo trailed off as they came to a stop near a set of bleachers.  Although the gym was pretty full, no one had noticed them yet in the dim lighting, which had been lowered to give the place as much romantic atmosphere as a school gym could offer.

“Gunray hates my mom,” Kylo went on with a little smirk.  “But of course he sucks up to her because he likes having a job, so I can get away with all kinds of stuff in his classes.  I’m taking him next year too just because of that, even though he’s annoying.”

“Let me guess, you’ll sit in the back of the room and glare at everything,” Poe teased him.  “You’ll have to explain how that’s getting away with more than what you normally do.”

Kylo looked down at him appraisingly, likely trying to figure out if Poe were trying to be mean or just funny.  He apparently decided on funny, because his smirk shifted into an actual smile, albeit a small one.

“Well, there’s an art to slacking off,” he declared.  “ _You_ wouldn’t know about it.  Dork.”

Poe laughed and was about to reply when he looked past Kylo to see Rey and Finn approaching them.  Normally, he would have been happy to see his friends, but now they made him nervous.  Poe was unsure of how they would react to Kylo. . . and he to them.

“There you are!” Finn called to Poe.  “Dude, we thought you were skipping out on us!  Don’t tell me you actually found a _date_.”  He didn’t seem to have noticed Kylo—until Rey jabbed Finn in the side and made a shushing noise.  Kylo turned to look at them too.  Poe glanced up at him, afraid of seeing an angry expression on the taller boy’s pale face, but there was none.  Instead, he looked apprehensive, almost scared.

“Oh!” gulped Finn.  As he and Rey stopped in front of them, Finn looked from Poe to Kylo and back again, utter bewilderment on his face.  Rey had a bit more self-possession.

“Hey,” she said to Poe; then she looked up at his date.  “Hey, Kylo.”

“Hey,” Kylo mumbled as Poe silently blessed Rey for her tact.  Not only was she being polite despite her earlier declarations that Kylo was a jerk, she had even called him by his preferred name.

Still, Poe felt like he needed to explain, “We decided to come together so we could both get in.”

“That makes sense,” Finn managed to say, despite still looking very confused.

“Oh, Poe, before I forget!”  Rey pulled a small envelope out of the back pocket of her jeans and held it out.  “I need to give you this.”  Poe took it, noticing she had drawn a little red heart on the sealed flap.  He shot her a questioning look, and beside him, Kylo folded his arms across his chest and scowled.

Rey smiled.  “It’s for B.B.”

“Ohhh, okay,” Poe chuckled and put the Valentine in his own pocket.  “I’ll give it to him.  Tomorrow if he’s not still up when I get home.”

“Thanks.”  Rey glanced up at Finn, then took his arm as she said, “Hey, let’s go dance.  We should get in a few fast songs before they start with the slow, boring ones.”  Finn looked both grateful and relieved to have an excuse to escape Kylo and Poe.

“Sure!  You know what an _awesome_ dancer I am.”  He chuckled and added to Poe, “Catch you later, bro.  Uh. . . .”  Finn gave Kylo an awkward nod before he escaped with Rey.

Poe wasn’t quite sure what to say when they were gone, so he mumbled, “That was sweet of Rey.  B.B. had a Valentine for her this morning.”

“He’s your little brother, right?” Kylo asked.  “I thought maybe Rey had brought that card for you.”

“Yeah, he’s my brother.  He has a little crush on Rey, I think.”  Poe looked up at Kylo, wondering if he had actually been jealous of Rey.  Kylo had his hands shoved in his pockets and was looking away from Poe, out across the gym.  The DJ—a recent graduate who earned extra money doing the lighting and sound at school functions—was playing fast dance and rap songs, accompanied by occasional strobe lights.  Kylo winced when they started flashing.

“I hate those things,” he muttered.  “And this music.”

“This really isn’t your scene, is it?”  Poe smirked, but then Kylo looked at him with an expression that was almost apologetic.

“I. . . I’m sorry,” Kylo mumbled.  “All I’m doing is complaining.”

“It’s okay.”  Poe reached out to pat him on the arm and ended up resting his hand on the soft sweater covering Kylo’s bicep.  The larger boy’s arm felt surprisingly muscular, surprisingly _good,_ and Poe had to force himself to drop his hand.

\--

Kylo managed not to flinch when Poe touched his arm.  He didn’t like being touched, usually, but it wasn’t so bad coming from Poe.  In fact, it was kind of nice.

Finally the horrendous dance mix playing came to an end.  The DJ put on a slower pop song, which was marginally better—until Kylo realized it was one of what Rey had called the “boring” songs that couples slow-danced to.  Before, only the more adventurous kids were out dancing to the fast music, while the rest stood around talking and flirting.  But now, the gym floor filled up with people and their dates.  Everyone seemed to be dancing except for Kylo. . . and Poe, who was still standing right there with him.

“You don’t have to stay here,” Kylo muttered.  “Go dance with somebody.”  Poe gave him a half-hearted nod, shifted as if he were going to walk away, then stopped and turned to face him instead.

“Well, you’re my date,” Poe pointed out, “so I should be dancing with _you_.”  Kylo felt his face heat up, and he was glad it was too dark for Poe to see him blush.

“You. . . don’t _have_ to,” he told Poe.

Poe smiled a little.  “Please?”

Kylo couldn’t resist any longer and stammered, “O-okay.”  He took a few steps out onto the gym floor and looked back as Poe followed him.  Kylo didn’t really know anything about dancing, but the slow dancing everyone else was doing seemed to be just swaying back and forth.  That wouldn’t be too hard. . . or at least, it wouldn’t have been if it wasn’t swaying back and forth with Poe Dameron.

Kylo faced his date and reached out awkwardly.  Most of the guys dancing with girls had their hands on their partners’ waists, and Poe was smaller than Kylo, so. . . .  His hands shook a little as he put them on Poe’s waist.  Then Poe reached up and put his arms around Kylo’s neck, just like the girls had done with the other boys.  Kylo shivered involuntarily, even though Poe’s arms felt warm through his sleeves.  His waist was firm, and when Kylo slid his hands down a little, he could feel the tops of Poe’s hip bones under his jeans.  Poe felt _good_.

They started to dance, swaying a little as they picked up each other’s rhythm.  It really wasn’t difficult, especially once Kylo got used to how Poe felt and moved.  In fact, it seemed natural.  Kylo found himself moving a little closer, slipping his arms around Poe to rest them on his waist.  Poe’s own arms tightened on Kylo’s shoulders.

And then Kylo realized Poe was singing along with the song in a murmur as they swayed back and forth: _I’m gonna love you like I’m gonna lose you, I’m gonna hold you like I’m saying goodbye. . . ._   Kylo would have been embarrassed to be caught singing, but when Poe glanced up at him and saw him watching, he just smiled and kept singing.  _I won’t take you for granted. . . ._

_Being that cute should be illegal,_ Kylo decided.

\--

Poe never would have admitted it, not even to Rey and Finn, but he sort of liked Meghan Trainor’s music.  He couldn’t help singing along, especially since it kept him from being too nervous about dancing with Kylo, but he thought he was doing it under his breath. . . until he glanced up and saw that the taller boy was watching him.  It was too late for Poe to pretend he hadn’t been doing it, so he just kept on going with a smile.  It was how he usually reacted to adversity: smile and make the best of it.

And Kylo smiled back, a _real_ smile this time, not a half-hearted one or a smirk.  Poe couldn’t ever remember seeing him look happy before, and it changed Kylo’s demeanor entirely.  He wasn’t just cute in a grumpy way anymore; he was actually _handsome_.  Poe couldn’t look away until Kylo broke eye contact first.

They pulled apart after the song ended and went back to standing by the bleachers.  Finn and Rey returned at one point—apparently after Rey had lectured Finn on acting like everything was normal, because he was his usual jocular self after that.  Nevertheless, when Poe offered to dance the next slow dance with Rey, the determined look on her face made him regret it.

But she accepted, and after that, there was nothing to do but go out there with her, leaving Finn standing beside Kylo and both of them looking like they’d rather be anywhere else.  Rey moved back and forth in Poe’s loose hold, staring at him until he gave in.

“Okay, _what_?” he groaned.

“You know what!  Are you and Ben—Kylo, whatever, going together?”

“No!”  Poe felt himself blush and hoped it was too dark for her to notice.  “It’s just like I said.  I ran into him in the library, and he wasn’t going to come tonight because he didn’t have a date.  So since you and Finn could still go together, I offered to be his date.  Just so he could get in.  Because his mother was making him come, but she didn’t know he didn’t have a date.”

“Poe.  You’re talking too much.”  Rey narrowed her eyes at him with that searching look she got sometimes.  “If you’re going out with him, you can tell me.”

“I’m _not_ ,” Poe protested.  “Look, you said yourself he was being rude to me this morning.  Why would he be rude to me if we were going together?”

“Why would you ask him out after he was rude to you?” she countered.

“I didn’t ask him out!  I just—it’s just. . . .”

“A mercy date?”  Rey raised her eyebrow.  “You being too nice for your own good, like always?”

It would have been easy to say yes. . . way too easy, in fact.  But Poe couldn’t do it, not after telling Kylo Poe wasn’t there with him out of pity.  And anyway, saying yes would have been lying to Rey, something both Finn and Poe knew better than to do.

“No,” Poe finally sighed.  “It’s not that either.  Look.  I like him, okay?  Just—just don’t tell Finn!  Or anybody.”

Rey rolled her eyes.  “Duh.  It’s pretty obvious.”

“It. . . it is?”  Poe swallowed hard.

“Well, to me,” she amended.  “Only because I pay attention to details.  Finn’s not going to notice, trust me.”

“ _What_ details?” Poe persisted.  “Do. . . do you think _Kylo_ noticed?”

“Him?  Ha.  He’s so wrapped up in himself, I’m surprised he knows anyone else even exists.  But to answer your other question. . . .”  Rey looked over Poe’s shoulder at Kylo, then back at Poe.  “Today, when you smiled at him and he glared at you, you looked like someone had just—just kicked a puppy in front of you or something.  Then you asked Phasma if she was coming with him tonight, _and_ you stuck up for him at lunch.  I know you’re the kind of guy who tries to see the good in everyone, but. . . you try a little harder with him.  And it shows.”

“Not to him, I hope,” Poe muttered.

“Why?  If you _want_ to go with him, why not say so?”

“Are you kidding?”  By now the slow song had ended, and the two of them were standing still, arms around each other, while everyone else was dancing faster around them.  Poe was too engrossed in the conversation to notice.  “I can’t tell him I have a crush on him!  He wouldn’t want to be my—my _boyfriend_.  And if he told Phasma or Hux about it, I’d never live it down!”

“What makes you so sure?” Rey prodded.  “That he wouldn’t want to be your boyfriend, I mean.”

“He just. . . wouldn’t,” Poe said helplessly.  “I’ve never heard anything about him liking boys.  And even if he does. . . he doesn’t like _me_ , not like that.”

Rey looked over his shoulder again and said deliberately, “Poe, at this moment, Kylo is glaring at me like— _no_ , don’t turn around, you idiot—like _I’m_ the one kicking the puppy.  If I kissed you right now, I think poor Finn would get a replay of the fit Kylo pitched for Mr. Ackbar this morning.”

“Hunh?  You mean he’s jealous of _you_?” asked Poe.  “Why?”

“Uh, because you’ve got your arms around me?”  Rey looked back into Poe’s eyes and grinned suddenly.

“Oh!”  Poe let her go and stepped back, chuckling.  “Sorry.”  They went back to the other two, and yes, Kylo did look pretty grumpy again.  Finn, on the other hand, seemed elated to have his friends back so that he wasn’t stuck with Kylo anymore.  He and Rey danced to the fast songs after that, and Poe joined them a couple times despite feeling he looked stupid.  Otherwise, he stood by Kylo and felt stupid there instead.

They stood out the next slow song.  Rey dragged Finn out to dance it with him, giving Poe a significant look as she did so.  Poe fidgeted and thought about asking Kylo to dance with him again, then decided the larger boy probably didn’t want to dance at all.  _If he did, **he’d** ask **me** ,_ Poe thought with a sigh.  _Rey’s crazy if she thinks he likes me.  Even if he did say I was cute._   He glanced up at Kylo and found the other boy’s intent dark eyes gazing back down at him.

“You didn’t want to dance with Rey again?” muttered Kylo when Poe looked at him.

“No,” Poe mumbled.  “We’re just friends.  You. . . know that, right?”

Kylo shrugged.  “How’m I supposed to know about _your_ love life?  Every rumor I hear about you is different, anyway.”

Poe stared at him.  “Wait— _what_ rumors?  People are starting rumors about me?”  Kylo actually chuckled—not meanly, but with true humor, the same way he had smiled a real smile earlier.

“Poe, I told you, you’re the most popular guy in our class,” he said.  “You’re really that oblivious, aren’t you?  Why do you think I said everyone would make fun of you if you came here with me?  Because everyone talks about you.”

“Really?”  Poe looked out at the dance floor, trying to process this new information; then he turned back to his date.  “What do they say?”

“That you’re going with Rey.  Or that she’s going with Finn because you hooked them up.  Or that _you’re_ going with Finn.”

“Wait, _what_?” Poe cried.  Kylo smirked at him, obviously enjoying his shock.

“You have to admit, you weren’t helping matters by saying you were coming to a dance with _both_ of them,” he pointed out.

“But I’m not _dating_ either of them!” Poe exploded.  “We’re all _just friends._   Geez, don’t people have anything better to talk about?”  Kylo only laughed at him again.

“You’re funny when you’re mad.  You look like. . . like an angry rooster or something.”  Poe was embarrassed—Kylo’s comment reminded him of B.B. and the Three Caballeros, although José was the parrot, not the rooster—but he also liked seeing Kylo laugh, even if it was at Poe’s expense.

“Just because I’m short, right?” Poe snorted.  “Fine then, if I’m an angry rooster you’re a. . . a stork!  You and your long legs.”

Kylo laughed harder and put his hand on the top of Poe’s head to emphasize how much shorter he was.  Poe grabbed Kylo’s hand to shove it off, then decided not to let go of it.  He liked how warm it felt, and how his own smaller, darker hand looked wrapped in Kylo’s long fingers, especially the one with the painted nail.  Kylo didn’t notice at first, until he quit laughing; then he looked down at their clasped hands in surprise.  Poe kept talking to distract him, hoping Kylo wouldn’t try to make him let go.

“Phasma seemed to think I was trying to ask _her_ out this morning.  Is Hux her boyfriend?” Poe asked.

“N-no,” Kylo mumbled.  He wasn’t looking at Poe anymore, but he wasn’t trying to take his hand away either.  “They’re kind of competitive.  If she doesn’t get valedictorian next year, he will.  I think they hang out together to keep an eye on each other more than anything else.”

“I’ve heard that _you’re_ her boyfriend too,” murmured Poe.  It was a small lie; no one had actually said as much, but Poe had wondered about it himself.

Kylo made an expressive face that clearly conveyed his feelings about the subject and declared, “Obviously not.  I’d be here with _her_ if I was, wouldn’t I?”  They had talked all the way through several faster songs, and they were still holding hands, both of them pretending that there was nothing unusual about it.  The DJ started a fourth slow song, and Kylo muttered, “You want to dance again?”

Poe’s heartbeat spiked, and he breathed, “Okay.”  Back on the gym floor, Kylo put his hands on Poe’s waist, near his back, and Poe rested his on Kylo’s shoulders.  He had to reach pretty far up to do it.

“Stork,” he hissed, looking up.

“Chicken,” Kylo whispered back.

“Oh, so I’m not even a rooster now?  Just a chicken?”  Poe tried to think of another tall, leggy bird.  “Ostrich!”

“Kiwi.”

“Fine,” Poe groaned, “you win.”

“Ha,” said Kylo as they swayed together.  He was smiling again, and Poe decided this was the best night he’d had in a long while.  He leaned his head on Kylo’s broad chest and closed his eyes.

\--

Kylo swallowed hard.  Poe hadn’t just. . . had he?

Yes, he had.  He had laid his head against Kylo, leaning into him like Kylo was his boyfriend or something.  Stupidly, Kylo wished he _was_ Poe’s boyfriend.  He glanced from side to side to see if anyone was watching them, but all the other kids seemed to be preoccupied dancing with their own dates.

_I shouldn’t be doing this_ , Kylo told himself.  _I’ll just end up getting hurt._   But he bent his head and rested his cheek against Poe’s dark hair anyway.  It was soft—it shouldn’t be so soft, just like it shouldn’t feel so nice to have his arms around Poe Dameron.  Poe’s hair smelled as good as it felt, and his body was warm against Kylo’s.  Kylo turned his head a little to press his lips into Poe’s hair.  As he had feared it might, the night had made Kylo’s crush on the other boy blossom into something more.  He really did want Poe to be his boyfriend, so he could hold Poe like this any time he wanted.

_Maybe we could at least be friends,_ Kylo thought.  _I guess I could stand to be around Finn and—_ He cringed a little. _–Rey if Poe is there._   And even just talking to Poe was nice.  No one else really talked to Kylo like that, unafraid enough to tease him but nice enough not to be mean about it.  Kylo wanted to get to know him better, even if it meant exposing more of himself to Poe in the process.  Even if it meant taking the chance of getting hurt.

When the song ended, they went back to their spot by the bleachers, and Poe didn’t try to hold his hand again.  But they started talking more, about school mostly: what classes they were taking next year, what teachers they liked and didn’t like, what colleges they were starting to think about.  Kylo noticed things he’d noticed before, like how pretty Poe’s eyes were and how he stood with his hips cocked to one side, but they seemed new now that Poe was right beside him instead of at a distance, talking and laughing with someone else.  Near nine o’clock, when the dance ended, the DJ put on one final slow song, and Poe took his hand.  They only took a couple steps out onto the gym floor before Kylo pulled the other boy into his arms, and Poe put his head on Kylo’s chest again.

This time when Kylo checked, someone _was_ watching them—two someones in fact: not Rey and Finn, as Kylo might have suspected, but Phasma and Hux.  Kylo had almost forgotten about their existence as he hadn’t encountered them all evening, but now they were dancing together halfway across the gym. . . or rather, they _had_ been dancing but had almost come to a standstill because they were busy staring at Kylo and Poe.

Kylo swore silently and looked away, wondering what to do.  Getting away from Poe as quickly as possible seemed like the most logical choice—but this was the last dance, and they had already seen him, and he might never get this close to Poe again.  And anyway, it might hurt Poe’s feelings.  For the first time in a long, long while, hurting another person’s feelings was the last thing Kylo wanted to do.

He resolved not to look at the other couple again and instead dropped his head to rest it against Poe’s once more.  He could—and would probably _have_ to—deal with Hux and Phasma later.  For now, for another moment at least, he had Poe.

And then the song ended, far too soon, and they let go of each other.  As the gym lights came up, Poe looked up at Kylo and smiled, and Kylo felt himself smiling back.  It was hard _not_ to smile at Poe.  But then Kylo remembered Hux and Phasma and decided he should escape before they got a chance to corner him.

“Let’s get out of here before the parking lot gets clogged up,” he muttered.

“Good idea.”  Poe didn’t seem to mind as they hurried out before most of the other kids.  Once they were in Kylo’s car and out onto the street, Poe leaned back in the passenger seat, then jumped when his cell phone made a noise.

“And that would be Rey and/or Finn, texting me,” he sighed.  “They’re so nosy.  Both of them.”  He didn’t take the phone out to check the message.

Kylo thought about asking if Poe wanted to go out for coffee or something, but now, without the excuse of dancing, he felt nervous being close to the other boy, even just sitting in the car.  He drove Poe home instead, yet at the same time, Kylo didn’t want the night to end.  None of what he felt made any sense.

Once Kylo had parked in front of Poe’s house, the smaller boy glanced at him then unbuckled his seat belt.  When Poe reached for his door handle, Kylo suddenly unfastened his belt and got out too.  He felt kind of stupid walking Poe to his door, like Poe was a girl and it was the 1950s, but Kylo thought he’d feel worse just driving off like a jerk.

And anyway, Poe was smiling a little as they went up the sidewalk to his house.  He stopped at the door, his back to it, and looked up at Kylo.

Kylo swallowed hard before he said, “Uh.  Thanks, Poe.”

“Thanks for what?” Poe asked.

“For being nice to me.”

Poe grinned at him.  “I told you, I wasn’t just being nice.  I had a good time.  Really.”

“Me too.”  Kylo let himself smile a little.

Poe looked like he wanted to say something more, but he just nodded and murmured, “I. . . guess I’ll see you at school on Monday.”  Kylo tried to think of a way to respond and couldn’t come up with anything that didn’t sound stupid.  Poe’s smile faded, and he turned to unlock his door as he muttered, “Bye.”

“Poe, wait,” Kylo blurted out.  The shorter boy turned back to him with a look on his face that might have been hopeful.

“Um, I. . . .”  Kylo couldn’t make himself say, _I want to kiss you_ , but he was able to take a step forward and put his hands on Poe’s shoulders.  Kylo licked his lips, started to lean down, and froze, thinking, _I can’t do it._

But somehow, miraculously, Poe was reaching up to put his hands on the sides of Kylo’s head, sliding his fingers into Kylo’s hair, leaning up on his toes, closing his eyes.  Kylo closed his eyes too and bent his head to meet Poe halfway.  Poe’s mouth was as soft as his hair had been under Kylo’s lips.  Kylo had never kissed anyone before, and he was amazed at how good it felt.  Even though their lips just brushed together before they both drew back, the touch felt electric.  Poe gazed up at him, his hands still in Kylo’s hair.  He was smiling, his dark eyes almost sparkling.

“Kiss me again!” he commanded.  Kylo didn’t usually like being told what to do, but he wasn’t about to argue now.  He gripped Poe’s shoulders and leaned down to press his lips against the other boy’s again.  They held the kiss longer that time, and a second after they broke it, Poe darted his head forward to peck Kylo’s lips one last time before he finally stepped back.  Kylo didn’t want to let him go, but he was also starting to get nervous again, afraid he wouldn’t know what to do if things progressed any further.

“I’ll. . . I’ll see you Monday,” Kylo mumbled.

“Yeah.”  Poe smiled at him again.  He had such a _beautiful_ smile.  “Night.”

“G-goodnight.”  Kylo turned around and hurried back to the safety of his car.  His heart was beating so hard, it almost hurt, and he didn’t dare to look back at Poe until he was in the car, belt buckled and engine running.  Poe had the door unlocked and open by then, but he looked back and waved.  Kylo waved too and couldn’t bring himself to drive away until Poe had gone inside.

\--

B.B. was still awake, and Poe had barely gotten to his room before his little brother came barreling in.

“Did you have fun?” B.B. asked, hopping up on Poe’s bed and swinging his bare feet off the edge.

“Does Mom know you’re still up?  And that you’re not wearing anything on your feet?”  Poe took his jacket off and tossed it across the footboard of his bed, then examined himself in the mirror.  He was _still_ blushing.  Thankfully, ten-year-old boys were generally not perceptive enough to notice something like that.

“Slippers are for _girls_ ,” B.B. declared.  That apparently reminded him of what he had come into the room for, and he asked, “Did you _dance_ with any girls?”

“I danced with Rey.”

“ _Oh._ ”  There was great emotion behind that word, both wonder and jealousy.  Poe grinned and turned back to his brother.

“And she gave me something for you.”  He pulled Rey’s envelope out of his pocket and passed it to B.B.

“For. . . for _me_?”  B.B. stared at Poe, then at the envelope.  He all but snatched it out of Poe’s hand and tore it open—making sure, Poe noticed, that he didn’t damage the heart drawn on the back.  The heart-shaped-balloon design on the card inside was cute without being too girly (although it _was_ from Rey, so Poe wasn’t really expecting girly anyway), but B.B. seemed more entranced by whatever Rey had written in the card.  A smile spread over his face as he read it.

“Well, what’s it say, buddy?” Poe chuckled.

“None of your business!”  B.B. put the card back in the envelope and clutched it in his hand as he looked back up at Poe.  “Did you _kiss_ any girls?”

Poe felt his face get hot all over again, and he muttered, “No.  I didn’t kiss any _girls_.”  He kicked his shoes off then gave his brother a stern look.  “Now, back to bed.  So _I_ can go to bed.”

“All _right_ ,” B.B. sighed dramatically.  He jumped down and went to the door, then looked back at Poe.  He hadn’t let go of Rey’s card.  “Poe?”

“Yeah?”

“I love Valentine’s Day,” B.B. sighed.

Poe looked down at him and grinned.  “Yeah, buddy.  Me too.”

\--

To be continued


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s been a long time since I was in high school, and I went to a small private school like the one in the story. A lot of details are based on what things were like for me at that school, so I apologize if anything seems a little weird!

“ _It’s a trap!_ ”

Every student in the room—including the dozing ones—jolted upright in their desks as their biology teacher shrieked.  Phasma had been doodling guns in her notebook, and even she jumped.  The lead protruding from the end of her mechanical pencil snapped off, making a dark smear on the paper, and she scowled at it before she flicked her eyes up to the front of the room to see what was going on.

The teacher, Mr. Ackbar, was gesturing at two beakers on the table at the front of the laboratory classroom.  His round hazel eyes tended to bulge a bit anyway, and now they were practically popping out of his ruddy face in consternation.  The source of that consternation was standing on the other side of the table, holding a test tube and scowling at his teacher: Ben Solo, or as he preferred to be called, Kylo Ren.

“I know what I’m doing,” Kylo growled.  Phasma leaned back in her desk and watched the tall boy in black whom she sometimes considered a friend.  She hadn’t been watching the experiment Ackbar had set up for the class—biology was an easy A as far as she was concerned and didn’t require much attention from her—but it might prove interesting after all.  Kylo had had it in for Ackbar for a week now, ever since the teacher had sent him to the principal. . . who happened to be Kylo’s own mother.  Really, Phasma thought, Ackbar should have known better than to make Kylo of all people perform the experiment, in front of everyone no less.  Kylo was surly on a good day, and he hated being told what to do.

“No, you don’t!” Ackbar protested.  “You were about to pour that in the wrong beaker—”

Kylo just kept glaring at him as he darted his hand out and tipped the contents of the test tube in the beaker closest to him.

“You moron,” Phasma groaned under her breath—one second before a _BOOM_ even louder than Ackbar’s shriek sounded from the front of the room.  When the smoke cleared somewhat, both Ackbar and Kylo, as well as the students in the front two rows of desks, were coughing with watering eyes.  Phasma was glad biology was the single class where she sat in the back.

“I warned you, Ben!” Ackbar snapped between coughs.  “You _have_ to be more careful!  You’re going to burn the whole school down one of these days, not to mention fail my—”  He broke off abruptly, silenced by the sound of Kylo’s test tube shattering when the boy threw it to the ground.  The laughter that had started to break out among the other students fell silent too, and everyone in the room stared at the furious teenager.  Even Phasma cringed.

Last week, Kylo had started screaming at Ackbar just because the teacher scolded him for being late to class, but at least he hadn’t broken anything.  Now, Phasma half expected him to start hurling beakers too.  Kylo shoved a hand through his shaggy, dark hair, and his equally dark eyes swept across the room as if daring anyone to challenge him.  Then he just turned and stormed to the door, slamming out of the lab and leaving the shattered test tube, as well as his belongings, behind.

The whole room seemed to exhale as one being.  Murmurs rose among the students, and one of them, Finn, jumped up to help Ackbar clean up the mess Kylo had left.  Phasma glanced over at the red-headed boy in the desk to her left.

“You know this is your fault, Hux,” she hissed at him.

“ _My_ fault?”  He gave her a look of mild incredulity.

“Yes.  If you hadn’t been teasing Kylo all week, he would have been in a better mood.”

“You can’t blame his neuroses on _me_ ,” was all Hux said.

That was Hux for you, Phasma thought as she went back to doodling until the chaos in the front of the room was contained.  He _had_ been teasing Kylo in his own way, pestering him about Poe Dameron.  Not that Hux had said anything homophobic—far from it, actually, instead expressing that same mild incredulity in the questions he let fall now and then, all of them along the same lines: how had Kylo managed to score a date with the most handsome boy in their class?  Hux never implied that there was anything _wrong_ with Kylo—he was the principal’s son, and more or less Hux’s friend, after all—but Poe was funny, popular, outgoing. . . all things Kylo wasn’t.

Phasma wondered about how they had ended up together, too, but it was Hux who had gotten under Kylo’s skin, to the point where Kylo was throwing test tubes around. . . and apparently avoiding Poe, whose pretty face took on the expression of a kicked puppy every time Kylo stalked past him in homeroom without acknowledging him.  Phasma felt a touch bad about it; Poe was a genuinely nice guy, and even she couldn’t help but like him a little.  (His looks didn’t hurt either, although she never would have admitted she noticed such things.)  But, she reasoned, Poe would get over Kylo soon enough, especially with the class’s prom preparations swinging into high gear in the coming weeks.  If anyone had trouble finding a prom date, it wouldn’t be Poe Dameron.

Speaking of which.  Phasma cast a sideways glance at Hux, who was playing a war game on his phone under the cover of his desk now that Ackbar had resumed class.  When social etiquette demanded Phasma have a date to something, Hux was always it.  For a moment, she allowed herself to wonder what it would be like to attend the prom with a date who actually had a thing for her, instead of one who just couldn’t be bothered to find something better.  But that was silly: she wasn’t in high school to have fun, after all.  And look where dating had gotten Kylo.

\--

“And then he just _left_.”  Finn’s eyes were wide as he sat turned backward in his desk to face Poe, sitting behind him, and Rey, to Poe’s right.  They were crowded into a classroom along with the other thirty-odd students in their grade, waiting for that afternoon’s class meeting to start.  Finn was taking the opportunity to recount the latest in what was becoming a weekly series of catastrophes in Mr. Ackbar’s class.

“Hunh,” said Poe, dropping his eyes from Finn’s to the surface of his desk.  He didn’t see Finn frown, miffed at not captivating his friend’s attention with his story, nor did he notice Rey shaking her head at Finn and mouthing, “Shut up!”

Poe supposed Finn was trying to make him feel better, offering the anecdote as evidence that Kylo hated _everybody_ , not just Poe.  It didn’t help.

Finn might have said something more, but the bell rang at that moment, and he turned around.  It was thirty minutes before school ended for the weekend, normally the start of study hall.  Today, however, the whole junior class was gathered in one room to start planning what every student either anticipated or dreaded: the prom.  The class’s two homeroom teachers—one for each section—were standing in the back of the room, but putting on the prom was always the responsibility of the students of the junior class, and the adults kept as hands-off as possible.

_And they’re probably glad, too,_ Poe thought.  _He_ certainly wouldn’t want to be in charge of wrangling a bunch of teenagers into pulling off a formal dance complete with fancy dinner before and midnight breakfast afterward.  But if anyone could manage the task, it would be their class president.  Poe finally looked up to see her standing at the front of the room, arms folded across her chest and imperious blue eyes sweeping over her peers.

“Is everybody here?  Who’s missing?” Phasma snapped.

“Bossy bitch,” Poe heard Finn mutter.

“Kylo,” someone else volunteered from among the rows of cramped students.

“Of course,” said another voice.  A few kids laughed, but they quickly shut up when Phasma glared at them.

“Never mind, we’ll start without him.  The first thing we need—”

She was interrupted by the creak of the classroom door being shoved open.  Every pair of eyes in the room shifted in that direction save one; Poe’s turned back down to his desk.

“Glad you could join us,” Phasma sniped at the latecomer.  Kylo returned her scowl and slouched back to the far corner of the room, where he slid down the wall to sit on the floor.  When everyone else had turned back to Phasma, Poe risked a glance in Kylo’s direction.  His tall frame was folded up with his knees (covered in black jeans) to his chest (covered in a black hoodie).  He was looking at Phasma too but with his dark eyes narrowed and his lips pressed together in a thin line, as if the last place he wanted to be was there and the last thing he wanted to think about was prom.

_Which is probably the case,_ Poe concluded, looking away before Kylo could notice him watching. _It’s the last thing I want to think about too._

“The first thing we need to do,” Phasma was announcing, “is to form committees to get all this stuff done.”  She pointed at the whiteboard, where she had written a list of items like “dinner,” “t-shirts,” “breakfast,” and “painting,” among others.  “Each committee will be in charge of doing everything that needs to be done for their area—like the t-shirt committee will design the shirts, take orders, get them printed, and give them out.  You can volunteer for the committee you want to be on, but I’ll just put you somewhere if you don’t have a preference.  And,” she added with a very pointed look in Kylo’s direction, “ _everyone_ has to do _something_.”

Finn half turned to look back at Rey and Poe as he asked, “What do you guys wanna do?”

“T-shirts I guess,” Rey mused.  “Designing them sounds kind of fun.  Better than planning menus or decorating the gym, anyway.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Finn agreed.  “What about you, Poe?”

Poe shrugged.  “I wouldn’t really mind doing any of it.  I’ll just take whatever’s left.”

“That’s our Poe,” Rey sighed.  “Sickeningly nice.”  He managed a smile at her, but really, he was feeling more apathetic than helpful.  He wasn’t going to enjoy _any_ of the prom preparations, so why bother volunteering?

Phasma went through the list of “committees” and wrote names on the board as students volunteered for each.  Organized as always, she also checked the kids’ names off the class roll to make sure everybody had taken a job.  After she had been through all the committees, she glanced at the roll, then at Poe.

“Poe?  You haven’t picked anything yet.”

He looked at the board; no one had volunteered for “painting,” which referred to decorating the large pieces of plywood that would act as scenery in the gym—mostly as a way to hide the bleachers.

“I’ll paint,” Poe offered.

Phasma looked rather pleased with him for taking on the job no one else wanted to do.  She wrote his name down, then looked at her roll again.  Poe’s heart sank as her faint smile shifted to a definite smirk.  He didn’t like that look, not at all.

“So that just leaves—”  Her eyes shifted from the piece of paper to the corner of the room.  “—Kylo.  You’re painting too.”

“No, I’m _not_ ,” Kylo snarled, at the same instant Poe groaned, “Oh no,” under his breath.  The vehemence in the other boy’s voice made Poe feel worse than ever.

_What did I do to make him so mad at me?_ Poe wondered.  _I haven’t even talked to him since. . . since last Friday night._

“Yes, you are,” Phasma informed Kylo as she added his name to the board.  “Poe can’t do all the painting by himself, and there are enough people in all the other groups.  Okay,” she went on, addressing the class as a whole, “we’ve got ten minutes.  Get with your committees and figure out what day next week you’re going to get started.  We’ve only got two months to pull this off.”

“Wait a minute.”  The voice that interrupted the impending commotion was Hux’s.  The only reason _he_ wasn’t the class president was because, as the SGA president for the whole school, he was ineligible.  In fact, Poe was rather surprised he’d managed to keep his mouth shut up to that point.  Finn may have thought Phasma was the resident “bossy bitch,” but Poe believed Hux deserved the title more.

“What about the poster?” Hux went on.  A murmur rose from the other students, and Poe groaned again.  He’d forgotten all about the poster.

“What poster?” Rey whispered to him.

“You’ll see,” Poe sighed.

“Oh, right.”  Phasma went over to the teacher’s desk and picked up what was actually two pieces of poster board resting on the chair.  They each bore two columns; the left column on each listed all the students in the class, and the right column was blank.

“As you all already know, unless you’re new—”  Phasma gave Rey a disdainful look at this point.  “—Principal Organa has to approve everyone’s date, especially if they aren’t in school here.  You have to turn in your date’s name at least a week before the prom, and when it’s approved, it’ll be added to the poster.”  She grabbed a handful of thumbtacks from the desk and started hanging the poster on the wall.

“You mean, everyone’s going to see who everyone else is going with?” Rey hissed.

Finn nodded and said over his shoulder, “They do it every year.  It’s kind of fun—people sort of bet on who’s gonna take who.”

“It’s kind of _stupid_ is what it is,” grumbled Rey.  “Fine if the principal wants to approve everyone, but why do they have to make it public?  What about the kids who have a hard time getting dates?”

_What about seeing someone else’s name by the person you like for weeks before the stupid prom even happens?_ thought Poe.

“Okay, _now_ , unless there’s something else, Hux?”  Phasma shot him an annoyed look, but he only shook his head no with his usual lack of expression.  “All right, go meet with your group,” Phasma told the rest of them.  Poe decided that he would rather go stick his hand in a beehive.  He thought about pretending to be part of the t-shirt group, which was forming around Rey and Finn’s desks, but Phasma was already watching him closely.

_She did this on purpose,_ Poe thought as he got up and started over to where Kylo was still slumped on the floor in his corner.  _Finn’s right; she really **is** a bitch._   But as he passed Hux, he noticed the smirk on the redhead’s face and once more thought that Hux was far worse than Phasma.

When Poe reached Kylo, the taller boy glanced up at him once, then resumed glaring at the carpet.  For a second, Poe almost felt like crying, but then that feeling made him angry.  _Why should I care that Kylo’s ignored me all week?_ Poe told himself.  _He’s a jerk, and I was stupid to ever think otherwise._

“I don’t want to do this any more than you do,” Poe muttered down at Kylo, “so let’s just get it over with.  When can you meet?”

“I have practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”  Kylo’s deep voice was nearly a growl, and he still wouldn’t look at Poe.  “How much shit do we have to paint, anyway?”

_Practice?_ Poe wondered.  _Practice for **what**?_   It had never occurred to him that Kylo might participate in some extracurricular activity.

Aloud, Poe said, “I don’t know, but they keep the boards backstage in the gym.  They’re big.  And I guess we’ll have to go buy paint and brushes.  And figure out what we’re supposed to be painting—”

“Fine, whatever,” Kylo interrupted him.  He finally raised his eyes to Poe’s; they looked startlingly dark in Kylo’s pale face.  “I’ll meet you in the gym after school on Wednesday, okay?  I’ll find out what we’re doing and bring the paint and stuff.”  Poe stared at him.  Kylo was actually _offering_ to do some of the work on his own?

“Are you sure?” Poe asked.  “I mean, I can help—”

“I don’t want you to help.”  The seated boy looked away from Poe, out into the room somewhere.  “Just be there Wednesday, and don’t bother me about it until then.”

Poe clenched his teeth so hard, his jaw popped.  He hardly felt the burning burst of pain; he was too wounded, and too furious.  _Is **that** why he won’t talk to me?_ Poe seethed. _I **bother** him?_

“Fuck you, Kylo.”  Poe almost never swore, but sometimes there just wasn’t anything else to say.  Kylo’s mouth fell open, and his eyes shot back to Poe’s face.  He looked shocked—but then most anyone who knew Poe _would_ be shocked.  The difference was that Kylo also looked hurt. . . really hurt.

_Good,_ thought Poe.  The final bell of the day rang, giving him the opportunity to escape, and he left Kylo on the floor and hurried back to his desk to grab his backpack.  Rey and Finn were waiting on him, and they exchanged worried glances when they saw the expression on Poe’s face.

“Uh, Poe—” Finn began, but Poe shook his head in a tight movement.  Finn wasn’t always the most perceptive when it came to social cues, but sometimes even he knew when to let a matter drop.

\--

Kylo didn’t get up until Poe had left the room, which didn’t take long—the other boy had stormed out in record time with Rey and Finn following in his wake.  Finally, Kylo pushed himself off the wall and stood, then looked over at Phasma and Hux.  They were standing together at the front of the room, talking as the other students drifted out.  Kylo thought about just leaving too, but then Hux glanced at him and smirked.

“You did that on purpose,” Kylo snarled at Phasma as soon as he had stalked over to the pair.

“You should have volunteered for a committee if you cared where I put you,” she shot back.

“What are you complaining about?” Hux put in.  “I thought Poe was your boyfriend.”

Kylo very nearly hit him.  If not for the incident in Ackbar’s class that day and the fact that Kylo’s mother was starting to threaten him with military school, he might _have_ hit Hux, just for the pleasure of wiping that prim little smirk off his face.  Instead, Kylo clenched his hands into fists against his thighs and tried to think of some way to reply.

“Shut up, Hux,” Phasma sighed.  Both boys looked at her with surprise; usually she seemed to _enjoy_ their bickering.  She met their glances with a deadpan look of her own.  “I don’t have time for your drama right now.  Kylo, just get the scenery painted, okay?  All it is, is projecting stuff up on the boards and tracing it.  It’ll take you a couple weeks at the most, and then you can ignore Poe for the rest of your life if you want to.”

“Fine,” Kylo muttered.  It wasn’t fine, not at all, but expecting sympathy from Phasma was a lost cause.

“And while you’re trying to convince all of us that you don’t have a thing for him,” Phasma went on, “you’d better start looking for a date so you can get them on the poster before Poe gets _his_ up there.  It won’t take him long—you know how popular he is.”

Now Kylo wanted to hit _her_ too.  For all Phasma’s talk of not having time for drama, she certainly loved to create it.  He decided the safest course of action was just to leave, but before he even got to the door, she called after him.

“You really hurt Poe’s feelings, you know?  Just because Hux was teasing you about liking him, you didn’t have to totally brush him off.”

“I _don’t_ like him,” Kylo growled over his shoulder.  “And he doesn’t like me.”

“Then I suppose I was wrong,” Hux put in.  “I’m sorry I jumped to conclusions after I saw you _dancing with him_.”

Kylo stalked out and slammed the door behind him.

\--

“Hux, you’re a douche,” Phasma muttered when Kylo was gone.

“You’re just as bad,” Hux returned, calm as ever.  “Admit it, you get off on stirring him up, don’t you?  And why are _you_ concerned about who Poe’s taking to the prom?  You’re not after him too, are you?”

“You’re disgusting.”  Phasma cast him a disparaging look, then added more thoughtfully, “What, are you worried I’ll go with someone other than you?  I can’t imagine anyone _else_ putting up with you all evening.”  Finally, she got something of a reaction, even if it was only a knitting of Hux’s brows.

Well, if you’re making other plans, let me know now,” Hux told her.  “I was going to turn our names in Monday morning.”

Irked by his audacity, Phasma snapped, “Without even asking me?  You really _are_ a douche.”

Hux looked at her a moment; then he said, “All right, then I’ll ask you.  Phasma, will you go to the prom with me?”

“Fine,” Phasma sighed.

\--

To be continued


	4. Chapter 4

For the first half of the next week, Poe managed to avoid Kylo as much as Kylo had been avoiding him.  On Wednesday morning, Poe woke up with his stomach in knots and thought about skipping school for the first time in his life.  Every day in homeroom, he had eyed the poster listing prom dates, waiting to see if and when someone else’s name appeared next to Kylo’s.  It hadn’t happened so far, but then very few students _did_ have dates already.  Phasma and Hux were going together, but that was to be expected.  Neither Rey nor Finn had a date listed, and they had avoided mentioning the prom altogether over the weekend and at school, at least while Poe was around.

But before school started on Wednesday, Rey turned in her desk next to Poe’s to face him.  “Uh, Poe?”

“Yeah?”  He had been looking at the cover of his math textbook without really seeing it, but he glanced up at her.  They were both several minutes early and had most of the room to themselves.

“Finn asked me to be his prom date.”  Poe nodded and waited for her to say something else, but she didn’t, only gazed at him with a faintly worried expression.

“Well, did you say yes?” Poe prompted.

“Not yet.  I, uh. . . .”  Rey never got nervous about much of anything, but she hesitated before continuing, “If you want me to go with _you_ instead, I will.  Finn’ll understand.”

Poe blinked at her.  She had never shown any romantic interest in either of them, but he had assumed she would be Finn’s date.

“Um, I wasn’t planning on asking you or anything,” Poe told her, feeling a little guilty.  Had she expected him to?

“I didn’t mean that,” Rey explained.  “I meant, if. . . .”  She took a deep breath then just said what she meant, in typical Rey fashion.  “I know you wanted to go with Kylo, so if you don’t have a backup plan, I’ll be it.”

For the first time in what felt like days, Poe smiled as he said, “Heh, thanks.  But I’ll be okay.  You _do_ want to go with Finn, right?”  He was amazed when the faintest of blushes tinged Rey’s cheeks.

“Yeah,” she muttered.

“Then go on and tell him.”  Poe sighed as his smile faded.  “I don’t even want to _go_ to the stupid prom right now.  But if I change my mind, I’ll find a date later.”  
  
“Poe. . . .”  Rey frowned.  “You _have_ to go.  I mean, we wouldn’t have any fun without you.  And there are plenty of girls—well, and boys—who would love to be your date.  You won’t have any trouble finding somebody.”

“I guess.”  Poe knew it was true, but it didn’t make him feel any better.  He didn’t care how many people wanted to be his date if Kylo wasn’t one of them.

Rey opened her mouth to argue her point, then shut it again when Phasma came in the classroom.  Phasma looked from one brunette to the other before taking her usual seat in front of Poe.  Poe went back to staring at his math book so he wouldn’t have to see Kylo when the other boy finally showed up for class.

Poe was normally on time for _everything_ , but he dragged his feet at the end of the school day.  Nevertheless, he found himself in the gym eventually, trudging over to the far side where the plywood prom scenery was kept during the year.  The gym had a stage at that end, recessed into the wall, for school plays, recitals, and other programs.  As Poe neared it, he could hear a goth sort of rock music coming from backstage, something with scratchy guitars and a heavy drum beat.  Kylo was obviously already there.

Poe went through a door to the right of the stage and up the short set of steps leading to the wings.  Because of the loud music, Kylo didn’t hear him coming, and Poe got a minute to watch the other boy and gather his own inner strength.  Kylo had apparently come through on his promise to get the materials they needed; he was already brushing white primer on one of the plywood boards to cover up last year’s artwork—some kind of badly-painted garden scene.  He had spread newspaper underfoot, and the music seemed to be coming from his phone, blaring from a Bluetooth speaker a safe distance away from the primer.

Up close, Poe recognized the song, “Wicked Game,” although it was a cover he wasn’t familiar with.  Poe liked eighties music well enough, but this version was too hard for his tastes—and being played _far_ too loudly.  Besides, the lyrics hit a little too close to home right then, anyway.

“ _Could you turn that down?_ ” Poe yelled at Kylo over the music, cupping his hands around his mouth to amplify his voice.  Kylo flinched and looked over his shoulder to glare at Poe.  He was wearing what Poe guessed was an old t-shirt—it was thin and faded from Kylo’s usual black to a sort of fuzzy grey—and Poe wished he’d planned ahead too.

_I’ll probably get paint all over myself,_ he predicted gloomily. _Perfect._

Kylo dropped his brush on the primer can’s upturned lid and stalked over to his phone to shut the music off.  Poe left his backpack by the stairs and approached with trepidation.

“You didn’t have to turn it _off_ ,” he muttered, even though he was kind of relieved.

Kylo ignored the statement and picked up a new brush.  “Here.”  He shoved the brush in Poe’s direction.  “Phasma said we have to prime all these things first, so the old stuff doesn’t show through.  If we can get them all primed today, then they’ll be dry by Friday and we can start painting.”  He said all this without looking at Poe, and he bent to collect his own brush then went back to work with it.

Poe dunked his brush in the primer and started in on another board.  He was embarrassed to discover that he was too short to reach the top of it; instead, he concentrated on the lower part although he dreaded having to ask Kylo later to reach the higher bits.

After a few moments, the silence was starting to get to Poe, so he tried to make some neutral conversation.  “What do we have to paint on them?  I’m. . . not that good at art.”

“Doesn’t matter.”  Kylo’s deep voice sounded even gruffer than normal.  “She said we can just project pictures up there and trace them.  You know our theme’s that dumb Cyndi Lauper song, so some of the girls decided they want some kind of time travel thing.”

“Oh.  Yeah.”  Last fall, the class had voted on their prom theme—“Time After Time,” another eighties song but one Poe preferred to the emo tunes Kylo apparently liked.  “Hey, I think I have some ideas for that,” Poe mused as he stroked primer up and down on the wood in front of him.  The action was kind of soothing, and he liked seeing the ugly roses on the board being smoothed into a flat white plane.

“Save ‘em for Friday,” Kylo grumbled.

Poe glared at him.  _Just when I’m almost enjoying myself, he has to be a dick again._   He thought about letting it go and just keeping quiet for the rest of the afternoon, but then that reminded him of Kylo’s “don’t bother me” comment.  And _that_ made Poe angrier than ever.

“For God’s sake, can you act like a mature human being for once?” he snapped at Kylo.

Kylo stopped painting and looked back down at him, brush clenched in his hand and eyes narrowed.  “Oh, mature like you telling me to go fuck myself?  All I did was say I didn’t want to hear your brilliant ideas right now.”

“I never said they were _brilliant!_   I was just trying to find something I could talk about without pissing you off!”  Poe threw down his brush on the newspaper and turned to face Kylo head-on.  “Why do you have to make this so hard?  I’m sorry I bother you so much, but you could at least try to get along!”

“ _You_ bother _me_?”  Kylo gave the plywood in front of him one more angry slap with his own brush then dropped it too.  “You don’t like my music—”

“All I said was it was too loud—”

“—or my ideas for the scenery—”

“—and you never said you _had_ any ideas!  How am I supposed to know if you don’t tell me?”

“Obviously, _I’m_ the one who bothers _you_!”

By now they were almost screaming at each other, Kylo with his fists clenched at his sides, and Poe waving his hands in the air.

“You _said_ I bothered you, on Friday!” Poe yelled.  “If I bother you so much, why’d you k-kiss—”  His voice broke, and he realized with horror that he was about to cry.

\--

When Poe’s voice cracked, he turned away from Kylo, his whole little body tensed.  Kylo felt almost sick at seeing him near tears.

“Poe, no, don’t—don’t do that,” he blurted out.  “I’m sorry.”

“You’re _sorry_?”  Poe rubbed the back of his hand over his left eye then spun around to face Kylo again.  His glaring eyes looked watery in spite of his efforts to hide it.  “Apologizing isn’t good enough!”  Kylo felt every bit as exasperated as he did when he fought with his parents.  Nothing was ever good enough for them, either.

“What else do you want me to do?” he groaned.

“Quit acting like such a jerk!” Poe spat up at him.  “You _kissed_ me, and then you wouldn’t even talk to me for a week and a half!”

“ _You_ kissed _me_ ,” Kylo retorted.  He had been trying not to think about the kiss at all.

“Okay, so we kissed _each other_ ,” Poe amended impatiently.  “Whatever, you’re still being a jerk!  If—if you didn’t like it, you could have just _told_ me instead of being mean to me.”

Kylo had to make an effort to keep his mouth from falling open.  As if he could _not like_ kissing Poe Dameron!

“Of course I liked it!” he cried.  “I liked kissing you, and dancing with you, and holding you—”  Kylo broke off, his whole face growing hot as he realized what he was saying.  Poe’s mouth was the one hanging open now, and his dark eyes stared up at the taller boy, all traces of tears gone.

“Then _why_?” Poe finally got out.  Kylo bit his lip, hard, looking down into the confused, pretty face staring back up at him.

“You’re too good for me,” Kylo muttered.

“Hunh?”  Poe blinked.  When he spoke again, his voice was calmer than before, even though he was still breathing hard.  “Because. . . because I don’t ever get into trouble?  I mean Rey and Finn are always telling me I’m too nice, but. . . I sorta thought that was a _good_ thing.”

“What?”  Good God, the kid really _was_ too nice if he so completely misunderstood what Kylo was saying.  “No, I mean—I’m not good enough for you.  I don’t deserve someone like you,” Kylo muttered as he lowered his eyes.  “I don’t know why you even went out with me in the first place.”

When Poe didn’t say anything, Kylo risked another look at him.  Poe was blushing, the olive-toned skin on his cheeks turning a gorgeous shade of dusky pink.  Kylo wanted to kiss him again so badly, he could hardly stand it.

“Because I like you,” Poe finally mumbled, looking up at Kylo more shyly now from under his eyelids, through his dark lashes.  “That’s why I wanted to be your date.”

“But _why_?” Kylo persisted.  “Why would you like _me_?”

“Why shouldn’t I?” Poe countered.  Kylo felt like they were going around in circles until Poe’s eyes narrowed suspiciously.  “Who _said_ I shouldn’t?  Phasma?”

“What?  _No,_ ” Kylo informed him with an air of disdain, as if he would never deign to care what _Phasma_ thought.

“Hux?”

Kylo’s shoulders slumped a little.

“I _knew_ it,” the shorter boy fairly crowed, reminding Kylo of a rooster again.  A really cute rooster who was, thankfully, no longer so mad at him.  Kylo was a little surprised to find he wasn’t angry anymore either as Poe went on, “Why’d you listen to _him_?  You always act like you don’t care what anybody thinks of you, so why _now_?”

Kylo looked down at the bucket of primer near his feet and thought about refusing to answer.  But that might make Poe mad at him again.  Or worse, it might make Poe. . . cry.

“Because it’s about you,” he muttered.  “I—I’ve had a crush on you for like, two years or something.  But you’re too popular and cute and—and _nice_.  You could go out with anyone you wanted to, so why would you settle for _me_?”

He was determined not to look at Poe anymore, but then the other boy said again, “Because I like you.”  When Kylo did look, Poe was still blushing, but those dark eyes were sparkling now.  “You’re. . . you’re kind of mysterious, and you’re smart and handsome, and you never smile so, um. . . so when I can make you smile at _me_ , it makes me feel. . . special.”

Kylo mumbled in bewilderment, “I’m not handsome.”  It was the easiest claim to debunk out of Poe’s litany.

Poe rolled his eyes. “Of course you are.  Your hair is so nice, and your eyes and your mouth—”  He blushed harder, broke off, then tried again.  “And I like how tall you are.  Even when you tease me for being short.”  He finally smiled, shyly, and then so did Kylo, as much as he tried not to.  Poe went on, “I. . . I wish you had told me you liked me sooner.  Instead of being mean to me and making me mad at you.”

“I’m sorry,” Kylo said again, his smile fading when he thought about how upset he had made Poe, never mind how upset he had been himself.  “I’m sorry I’m a. . . a jerk.”

“Well then, stop being one,” Poe ordered.  “And I’ll forgive you.”

“O—okay?”  Kylo wasn’t sure exactly how _not_ to be a jerk, but he supposed he could try, for Poe’s sake.  Anything to hold on to the sense of relief he felt that Poe _did_ like him, despite everyone else’s disbelief that such a thing could be possible.

“And smile more,” Poe added.  “At me.  You don’t have to smile at anyone else though.”

Kylo actually laughed before he could even think about it.  “Fine, fine.  You’re so demanding—bossy little rooster.”

Poe grinned, showing his perfect white teeth.  “ _Stork_.”

Kylo had felt an unfamiliar warmth inside his chest at seeing Poe smile, but it increased a hundredfold when Poe suddenly pounced on him and shoved his arms under Kylo’s to hug the other boy’s broad chest.  Kylo swallowed hard, sure he was blushing all the way down to his shoulders.  Less than two weeks ago, he had resolved never to speak to Poe again, and now the other boy was _hugging_ him.  Kylo felt extremely awkward. . . but extremely happy, too.

_Screw what Hux or anybody else thinks,_ he decided, wrapping his own arms around Poe’s shoulders and hugging Poe hard against him.

\--

When he felt Kylo’s arms close around him, Poe snuggled closer against the taller boy’s chest.  He probably shouldn’t have forgiven Kylo quite so quickly—he could just imagine what Rey would say—but Poe just didn’t want to fight anymore.  He didn’t want to paint anymore either; what he wanted to do, he thought, was kiss Kylo again.  Kylo _had_ said he had a crush on Poe, so he shouldn’t mind if—

The sound of the stage door opening made both boys jump and pull away from one another.  Neither looked at each other as they each snatched up their brushes—now almost dried out—and pretended to be painting.  Glancing over his shoulder, Poe was glad they had started the charade just in time, because the intruder was Kylo’s mother.

“H-hi, Principal Organa,” Poe said as cheerfully as he could manage, hoping she wouldn’t notice that he was blushing.  At the panel next to his, Kylo cringed.  He was blushing too, and on his paler skin, it was even more obvious.

“Hello, Poe.”  The petite principal smiled at him—she _had_ always liked him—then looked over at her son as she climbed the steps up to them.  “Ben, I heard you were back here painting.”

“Yep,” Kylo muttered.  He had been rubbing the nearly dry brush on the wood for a couple minutes now before realizing he wasn’t getting anywhere, so he finally crouched down to dunk it back in the primer.  “You didn’t have to come check up on me.”

“So you say,” the principal retorted with her hands on her narrow hips, “but you tend not to be where you’re supposed to be when I come looking for you.  Although I feel better now that I know you’re working with Poe.”  Poe gulped, thinking that she might not feel as relieved if she knew he had been plotting to kiss her son.  Kylo just turned his back on her and went back to priming.  Poe felt a little awkward; he wasn’t used to seeing _anybody_ be rude to Principal Organa.

The principal turned to him and asked, “How long are you two going to work?”

“Uh. . . we wanted to get all the boards primed today so. . . another hour, hour and a half?”  Poe looked over at Kylo, who shrugged.

“All right,” Principal Organa agreed.  “Ben, you come straight home when you’re finished.  You’re grounded, remember.”  Kylo blushed again, hard, and Poe tried not to grin.

“Mom, I _know_.  You’re embarrassing me,” Kylo growled.  “Go away.”

Unperturbed, Principal Organa started down the steps again.  “Keep an eye on him, Poe,” she added.

“Er, yes ma’am,” Poe stammered.  She gave him another smile—a disturbingly _knowing_ smile—as she left.

The two boys painted in awkward silence for a minute before Poe asked, “Grounded, hunh?”

Kylo sighed.  “Yeah, for what happened in Ackbar’s class last week.  I, uh. . . guess you heard about that.”

“Finn told me.  You really should let up on Mr. Ackbar—he’s not _that_ bad.”  Poe glanced at Kylo to see him scowl. . . but then he looked over at Poe, and his expression relaxed into one that was more apologetic than anything else.

“Yeah.  I guess.  He’s just always on me about something.  Just like my parents.”

“Well, you’re going to have to shape up now that I’m supposed to keep an eye on you,” Poe declared.  He grinned at Kylo and got a shy smile in return.  “I don’t want your mom mad at me—and you’ve gotta get yourself ungrounded before the prom.”

Kylo looked away quickly, but then he noticed the unpainted upper third of Poe’s board.  “Hey, you’re doing a pretty crappy job there.”

“I can’t—I can’t reach that high!” Poe admitted.

Kylo started laughing and left his own board, now finished, and dipped his brush again before joining Poe at his.  “Outta my way, shorty.”  He started painting the parts Poe couldn’t reach.  “You can get started on the bottom half of the next one.”

With Poe priming the lower parts of the scenery and Kylo working on the higher ones, they managed to finish in a little over an hour.  They were both sweaty and smudged with primer—Poe’s shirt was a lost cause, and he wondered if he should be worried about _his_ mom’s temper—when they carried their brushes across the gym to rinse them in the locker room.

“So, uh. . . what were you thinking we should paint on Friday?” Kylo mumbled as they stood at the sinks. Poe glanced down at Kylo’s long, pale fingers working through the bristles of his brush.  He was still painting that single fingernail on each hand.

“I thought you weren’t interested in my ideas,” Poe sniffed.  Kylo cut his eyes sideways to give Poe a look through the strands of dark hair hanging forward from his bent head.

“Don’t be a diva, or I’ll tell Phasma you’re too short to do your share of the work.”

Poe smirked and flicked his brush at Kylo, misting him with water.  Kylo reciprocated, which led to a scuffle resulting in both of them getting soaked while laughing at each other’s bedraggled appearance.

“I’d better go,” Kylo panted when they finally stopped to catch their breath.  “If you want me to get ungrounded, I can’t get home late.”

“Okay.  Here, I’ll take the brushes back and clean up.”  Poe plucked Kylo’s out of his hand.  “You go on.”

Kylo looked surprised, but he nodded.  “Um, thanks, Poe.  And. . . and I really do want to hear your ideas.  I’m sorry I said that.  I’m. . . .”  He lowered his head, then looked at the other boy through his hair again.  “I’m sorry about everything.”

Any last bit of resentment Poe felt melted away.  “It’s okay,” he assured Kylo.  “I’m sorry I said—well, what I said to you Friday.  But. . . you’ll still have to wait to hear my brilliant plans for what we’re gonna paint.”  He smiled up at the taller boy.  “Do you know where we can get a projector, though?”

“Yeah, I can get everything and set it up.  I. . . guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah.  See ya.”  Poe drew in his breath when Kylo suddenly stepped forward and put an arm around him to hug him again.  It was quick and awkward, and Poe could only hug him back with one arm since his other hand still clutched the brushes; still, he smiled as he was pressed against Kylo’s wet shirt.  Kylo drew back and gave him a little smile in return before he hurried out of the locker room.

\--

To be continued


	5. Chapter 5

When Phasma got to homeroom Thursday morning, she didn’t notice that Poe was smiling for the first time in almost two weeks.  In fact, she barely noticed Poe, or Rey, or anyone else at all; her mind was too preoccupied with everything she had to worry about.  Phasma sat in her usual desk in front of Poe and looked down at the notebook she was filling with to-do lists: a list for general prom preparations, a list for her committee (the dinner one, which she had joined since she didn’t trust the other committee members to accomplish much of _anything_ ), and all her usual lists for college applications, extracurricular activities, homework. . . .

It wasn’t even eight in the morning yet, and Phasma was already exhausted just thinking about it all.

She only realized that something had changed between Kylo and Poe when Kylo finally made it to homeroom—seconds before the tardy bell, as usual.  Phasma glanced up at him as he passed her desk, and she raised an eyebrow when she realized he was actually _smiling_.  Not much, mind you, but a little, which was still a shocking development.  She heard him whisper, “Hey,” to Poe when Kylo went by, heard Poe whisper back.  Kylo went to slouch in his regular desk at the back of the room, but when Phasma glanced at him over her shoulder, he was still watching Poe.

_Interesting,_ Phasma thought.  Maybe they had made up.  Maybe they had _more_ than made up.

After their first class was over, Phasma took her time gathering her belongings and standing up at her desk, hoping to overhear the two boys talking.  Once again, she wasn’t paying attention to Rey, and she jumped when Rey’s small hand suddenly closed over her wrist and hauled her in the direction of the door.

“What the hell are you doing?” Phasma snapped as she tried to tug her wrist out of Rey’s grip.

“Come _on_ ,” Rey growled between her clenched teeth.  Phasma had no choice but to comply, and Rey finally let her go when they were out of the room.  “I’m getting you out of the way,” the brunette informed Phasma.  “I don’t know what did it, but Poe and Kylo aren’t fighting anymore, and I’m not leaving you in there with them to mess things up again!”

“ _Me_ mess things up?”  Phasma pushed her long, blond ponytail back over her shoulder impatiently.  “If they were fighting, it wasn’t because of _me_.  Hux was the one bugging Kylo about dating Poe.”

“You, Hux, whatever, same difference.”  Rey’s expression was as scornful as her tone.  “I couldn’t care less if Kylo’s happy or not, but he makes _Poe_ happy, so you’re both going to give them some space.”

That was fine by Phasma, who, while curious, didn’t have time to waste on either boy.  Something else was still bothering her, though, and she narrowed her blue-grey eyes at the other girl.

“What do you mean, ‘same difference’?”

“Hunh?”  Rey blinked at her.  “I meant, you and Hux might as well be the same person.  I get that he’s your boyfriend, but I think this first class is the only time I don’t see you two together.  Don’t you get tired of—”

“Who said he’s my boyfriend?” Phasma interrupted her.  She wasn’t quite sure why she cared what Rey thought, since she didn’t have time to waste on _that_ either.  But for whatever reason, it annoyed her that people assumed she and Hux were going together. . . just like he had assumed she’d be his prom date without even asking.

“Well, you _are_ going to the prom together,” Rey pointed out.

“So are you and Finn, according to that poster in there!” Phasma retorted.  “So is Finn _your_ boyfriend?”

“No!” snapped Rey.  “But I’m not joined to Finn at the hip, either, like you two are!  So Hux _isn’t_ your boyfriend.  Big deal.  He might as well be!”

“I don’t have time for this,” Phasma muttered, voicing what she had been thinking all morning.  “Maybe I’m the only person in this entire school who has more important things to think about, but I’m not here to—to have a _boyfriend_.  I’m just trying to get by until I can graduate and get out of this hellhole into the _real_ world.”  She stopped short when she realized Rey was staring at her. . . probably with good reason since Phasma had never shared her innermost thoughts with anyone, and especially not with _Rey_.

“I’m going to be late for class,” the blonde grumbled as she pushed past Rey and stalked off toward the biology lab.

Hux was already in his desk—the one next to hers—when she arrived and slammed her books down on the desktop.  Out of the corner of her eye, Phasma saw him give her a questioning look, but she tried to ignore him.  She _wasn’t_ late, of course, and neither was Kylo; in fact, he was a couple minutes early.  That surprised Phasma, as did the expression on his face—not smiling, exactly, but not surly either as was typical.  Maybe being around Poe was good for him.

Phasma didn’t quite understand that.  She had never found motivation and happiness in another person, only in going after her own goals.  She didn’t make straight A’s and generally overachieve _everything_ because she wanted to impress some guy (and certainly not _Hux_ ); she did it for her own sake and the shot it gave her for a better future.  But here Kylo was, being responsible for the first time in his high school career.  Not only was he on time for his classes, he and Poe had done an admirable job for their first painting session, and Kylo had even shown initiative about it, asking Phasma for specific instructions and supplies.  And now he was sitting (well, slumping) in his desk with a content look in his dark eyes instead of his usual loathing for the world.  Rey had said Kylo made Poe happy too.  Like Rey, Phasma couldn’t imagine why, but there it was.

A folded note landing on Phasma’s desk jerked her out of her thoughts.  She cast her eyes up to Mr. Ackbar at the front of the room; he was drawing molecules on the board and hadn’t noticed the triangular lump sailing like a paper football from Hux’s desk to hers.  Phasma shifted her glare to Hux—he _knew_ she didn’t like passing notes, seeing it as an unnecessary risk of getting in trouble—then unfolded the piece of notebook paper.

“What are you so pissed about?” the note read.  It only served to piss Phasma off _more_ , because he knew her so damn well.  _You and Hux might as well be the same person,_ Rey had said.

“Nothing,” Phasma scribbled back.  Her handwriting was messy when she didn’t put an effort into it, like she did for school assignments.  “Just too much to do.  Dinner committee meeting this afternoon.”  She thought about putting in a question about how the midnight breakfast plans were coming along, since Hux was in charge of that committee, but she decided that was something better discussed face to face.  Phasma refolded the paper with a few deft twists of her long fingers; then she positioned it, propped up with one corner on her desk and the other steadied by a silver fingernail.  She drew back a finger of her other hand, ready to flick the note back to Hux—

“Phoebe!”

She started, and the triangular lump of folded paper fell over on its side.  Clenching her jaw, Phasma looked up to see Mr. Ackbar glaring at her from the front of the room.  Only her teachers called her by her real name, a name she hated.

“Bring that up here.”  Ackbar’s glare at being disrespected had already faded into a look of slight bewilderment.  That was understandable: Phasma never got in trouble.  _Never_.  Which wasn’t to say she never did anything wrong; she just never got caught.  Teachers generally overlooked her during class because she was such a good student. . . or because all their time was absorbed by the kids who _did_ get in trouble.  Kids like Kylo, who was now grinning because for once, it was Phasma getting caught instead of him.  She glared at him as she stalked to the front of the room and dropped the folded note in Ackbar’s outstretched hand.  At least she hadn’t written anything embarrassing.

When she turned to go back to her desk, Phasma saw that _most_ of the class was grinning, some nudging each other: it was _that_ unusual for her to get called out for something.  She didn’t think she was blushing, thank God, as she returned to her seat, but she still hated Kylo a little for picking today of all days to behave himself.  If he had been causing trouble, Ackbar would have been too distracted to notice Phasma.  While she was at it, she might as well hate Poe Dameron too for putting Kylo in such a good mood to begin with.

But, Phasma decided, it was really all Hux’s fault. . . especially when she glanced over at Hux and saw that _he_ wore the widest smirk of all.  He had started the note-passing in the first place, and now he had the audacity to laugh because _she_ got in trouble for it.

_And I’ll be damned if I go to the prom with him,_ Phasma resolved.

Hux made the decision even easier on her as soon as class was over: as the students got up to go to lunch, he taunted, “You never answered my question.  What are you so pissed about?”

“Go to hell, Hux,” Phasma hissed.

Like he could read her mind, Hux said, “It’s not _my_ fault you got in trouble.  You didn’t even _look_ to see if Ackbar was watching when you were about to pass that note.”  Phasma hugged her books tighter against her chest and willed herself not to whack him upside the head with them.  She liked to think that she was more mature than the other kids her age, but he made it difficult.

She waited until they were in the hall outside the biology lab before turning on him.  “You want to know what I’m so pissed about?  It’s _you_.”

“Me?”  He didn’t look upset or even mildly concerned.  “Is this still about Kylo?  Because today he seems to be perfectly happy—”

“ _No_ , this is about _you_ and _me_ ,” Phasma snapped.  “I’m sick of it.  You know what Rey told me this morning?  That she thought you were my _boyfriend_.”

Hux shrugged.  “So?  Since when do you care what Rey thinks?”

“Because if _she_ thinks it, _everybody_ thinks it.”

He arched one perfect eyebrow—he probably spent more time on his brows than most girls did, she thought—and said again, “So?  If the worst thing anyone is saying about us is that we’re going together, I’ll be a bit disappointed.”

Phasma didn’t know if Hux was trying to be vulgar or just insidious, but in either case, his flippancy was the last straw.  She very nearly _did_ hit him then, lifting one hand from where it clutched the edge of her books but stopping herself before she actually slapped him.

“I’ve had it with people assuming things about us,” Phasma informed him, “and especially with _you_ assuming things about _me._ ”  He opened his mouth, but she cut him off before he could ask, “Like what?” in the snide tone she could just hear in her mind.  “Like that I was going to be your prom date without even asking me.”  He opened his mouth again.  “And yes, I know, you _did_ ask me, but only after I _made_ you!”

Hux waited to be sure she was finished before trying a third time to speak.  “Well, you _did_ say yes.  Did you have someone else in mind to be your date?”

And that, in a nutshell, was Hux: able to be so utterly obnoxious under a veneer of complete politeness.  He didn’t _say_ that Phasma would never be able to find another guy to go out with her, just like he hadn’t _said_ that Kylo was crazy if he thought Poe Dameron was into him.  All of Hux’s insults were implications, implications hidden under such careful words that anyone accusing Hux of being mean would look insane.  Yet Hux’s meaning was always clear: that no one as popular and good-looking as Poe would ever be interested in a loser like Kylo.  And that no one _at all_ would put up with the girl who managed to have the reputation of class nerd, bitch, and ice queen all at the same time.  No one except Hux himself.

“No,” Phasma said, “I didn’t.  But I’d rather not go at all than go with _you_.”

Finally, she got a reaction, albeit a small one, when Hux stared at her.  “You’re serious?”

“Yes,” huffed Phasma.  “In fact, I’m going to take our names off that stupid poster _right now_.”

Hux’s eyebrows shifted together and upward in the middle, and for one tiny instant, he looked hurt.  However, before Phasma could even contemplate this, his brows snapped down again and his face dropped all expression as he replied, “Fine with me.”

Phasma left him there and did, in fact, go straight to her homeroom, where she rifled through the teacher’s desk until she found a Sharpie.  The smell of the permanent marker had given her a headache by the time she had obliterated her name from beside Hux’s, and his from beside hers, but even so, the action made her feel the best she had all year.

\--

As he usually did, Poe met up with Finn and Rey at the lockers when the lunch bell rang.  They all had different classes during the period before lunch, and they enjoyed sharing stories about whatever interesting events had taken place while the trio was apart.  Today, however, Poe barely heard Finn’s tale about Phasma getting in trouble for passing notes in biology; Poe was too busy daydreaming about Kylo.

_Maybe he really **is** sorry for how he acted,_ Poe mused as he trailed after Finn and Rey on their way to the lunchroom.  _He’s been so nice to me today, even when other people were around!_   The lunchroom was in a separate building from the school’s classrooms, with a courtyard between it and the elementary building.  A few kids, Kylo among them, almost always sat outside at the round picnic tables scattered about the courtyard.  In fact, Poe couldn’t remember Kylo _ever_ eating lunch inside unless it was raining.  The weather that day was sunny and even a bit warm for the end of February, and sure enough, Poe spotted the other boy alone at a table near the lunch room.  Kylo’s phone lay on the table in front of him, and he was hunched over it.

Poe looked away for a minute, but as he and his friends passed Kylo, Poe risked another glance at him.  Kylo was watching him in return, and he lowered his head and started messing with his phone when he saw Poe look at him.  Poe followed Finn and Rey into the lunchroom, but then he stopped just inside the door.

“Hey, uh, guys?”  The other two stopped and looked back at him.  Poe swallowed hard and told them, “I’m gonna go outside and sit with Kylo.”

A grin sprouted on Finn’s face.  “You gonna ask him to go to the prom with you?”

“No!” Poe retorted.  It was the truth; he hadn’t been planning to ask Kylo that. . . at least not at school in the middle of lunch.  “We. . . we need to talk about what we’re going to paint.”

“Sure.”  Rey’s tone made it clear she didn’t buy Poe’s excuse for a minute, but she cocked her head at Finn.  “C’mon, leave him alone.  We’ll see you after school, Poe.”

Poe hung inside the doorway to the lunch room until his face was no longer warm from Finn’s teasing; then he went back out to where Kylo sat.  The taller boy looked up from his phone when Poe stopped beside him and stood, fidgeting.

“Hey,” Kylo murmured.  The corner of his mouth twitched, like he was trying not to smile.

“Hey, uh. . . can I sit with you?”  The way it came out made Poe feel kind of dumb even though he was trying be polite, instead of just assuming Kylo would want him around.  But Kylo really did smile then, and he slid over to make more room on the bench next to him.  Poe smiled back and sat down beside him.

“I wanted to be sure you can still paint tomorrow,” Poe said, figuring that it was as good a reason as any to explain why he was there.

“Yeah, I can.  Sorry I can’t today.”  Kylo put down his phone, glanced at Poe, looked away.  He tapped his fingers on the red vinyl coating of the metal picnic table.  Poe admired his hands—his nail polish was a metallic gunmetal grey that day—before digging into the paper bag he’d brought his lunch in.

“What kind of practice do you have?” Poe asked as he pulled out his sandwich.  “I didn’t know you—well, did anything.”

“Fencing,” Kylo muttered.  “I take lessons across town.”

“Whoa, really?  That’s awesome!”  At Poe’s exclamation, Kylo gave him a suspicious look, but then relaxed when he saw Poe was being sincere.

“Yeah, I’ve been doing it a few years,” he told Poe.

“I. . . I never knew.”  Poe felt sort of bad about it.  Not that he could have been _expected_ to know anything about Kylo, as reticent as the other boy was, but still. . . .  Then Poe noticed Kylo wasn’t eating lunch.  Poe wasn’t either—he had been waving his sandwich around as he talked—but Kylo didn’t even have any food with him.  “Aren’t you gonna eat anything?” Poe asked.

“Oh, uh, I’m not hungry.”  Kylo paused and looked a little embarrassed.  “And I forgot my lunch this morning.  And my money.”

Poe tried not to laugh.  “Dude, your mother works here.  Can’t you borrow some money?”

“No way,” Kylo scowled.  “I’m not about to ask _her_ for anything.  Anyway, she’d just lecture me about getting my shit together.”

“Which you really need to do,” Poe informed him.  Kylo glared at him, but Poe decided not to let it bother him.  Instead, he held out half of his sandwich.  “Want some?  It’s peanut butter.”

“I said I wasn’t hungry,” Kylo grumbled.

“Yeah, and you were lying, right?”  Poe grinned at him until Kylo sighed and took the sandwich.

Kylo bit into it after muttering, “Stop being so cute.”  Poe felt himself blush again, and to distract himself, he opened the soda he’d bought.  Kylo didn’t have anything to drink either, so Poe set the can in front of him.  When Kylo hesitated, Poe smirked.

"I’m not sick, if you’re worried about drinking after me.”

“You sure?” Kylo replied in such a deadpan way, it took Poe a second to realize he was joking.  “I heard mono’s going around.”

“Oh really?” Poe retorted.  “Then maybe you’d better not.  I kissed a pretty sketchy guy recently.”  Now Kylo was the one to blush.  He tried to glare at Poe again but ended up smiling instead.

After he took a drink, Kylo asked, “Do you still have my phone number?”

“Yeah.”  Poe finally started eating his half of the sandwich.  “Why?”

“I. . . thought you might have deleted it when, uh. . . when I was being such a dick to you,” Kylo mumbled.

“No.  I—I thought about it, but I couldn’t do it,” admitted Poe.

“I still have yours too,” Kylo said.  He had already finished his part of the sandwich, despite his claims of not being hungry.  “I. . . I wanted to call you, but—”  He broke off and changed the subject.  “But anyway, if something comes up and we have to reschedule painting one afternoon, we can text each other.”

“Good idea.”  While Poe finished eating, Kylo stayed quiet, and they passed the soda back and forth until the can was empty.  They sat in silence a few minutes while Poe tried to think of something to say.  All that kept coming to mind was Finn’s comment about Poe asking Kylo to be his prom date.  Poe _wanted_ to, but what he _really_ wanted was for Kylo to ask _him_ instead.

“It’s. . . it’s okay if you still want to call me some time,” Poe mumbled.  “Not just about the painting.”

“Yeah, you—you too.”  Kylo drummed his fingers on the table again then dropped one hand to the bench between them, where Poe’s hand was resting.  Poe drew in a sharp breath when he felt Kylo’s fingers lace through his.  “Thanks for lunch,” Kylo muttered.

“You’re welcome.  But I’m not feeding you again tomorrow, so you’d better listen to your mom and get your, uh, act together,” Poe scolded him.

“First you tell me to get myself ungrounded, and now I have to remember my lunch too?”  Kylo rolled his eyes.  “I even behaved myself in Ackbar’s class today, and you’re _still_ not satisfied.”

“I heard.  I also heard Phasma got busted for passing notes to Hux, too.”

“Yep.”  Kylo grinned at him.  “It was great.”

“Okay, okay, I’m proud of you,” Poe chuckled.  “But if you’re doing something active like fencing, you need to eat more than half a sandwich for lunch.”

“I’ll make a deal with you,” Kylo finally relented.  “I’ll bring something to eat, if you’ll sit with me again.”  He smiled at Poe, softer this time, and Poe felt like he was going to melt right into the ground.

“Yeah, I will,” Poe murmured.  “Or maybe. . . you could sit with me and Rey and Finn.  They probably wouldn’t mind eating out here if you didn’t want to be inside.”

Kylo dropped his eyes.  “I. . . I dunno.  They might not want me around.”

“Kylo, they’ll be fine having you around, I promise.”  Poe squeezed his hand.  “But if you don’t want to, it’s okay.  I’ll sit with you either way.”

“Okay.  I’ll think about it—Rey and Finn, I mean,” Kylo clarified as he squeezed Poe’s hand in return.  They looked at each other until the bell rang a moment later, signaling the end of the lunch period.

“I guess I won’t see you again until tomorrow,” Poe sighed as they let go of each other’s hands.  Kylo got up and shoved his phone in his pocket, looking down again.

“Yeah.  I, um—yeah,” he muttered.  He glanced up at Poe when the shorter boy stood too and said, “I. . . I might call you tonight.  When I get home.”

“Yeah!”  Poe realized he sounded way too enthusiastic and added, “I mean, okay.  But only for a little while—because we both have pre-cal homework,” he added in a stern tone, tempered by a smile he couldn’t hide.

“Dammit, Poe,” Kylo groaned.  “It’s a good thing for you that you _are_ so cute, because otherwise you couldn’t get away with bossing me around like this.”  He smiled at Poe anyway before leaving for class, a smile that was a little bit more mischievous than before.

_Not just mischievous,_ Poe thought in a bit of a daze as he went to his own class.  _Kind of sexy._   He spent the rest of the school day wondering what time Kylo got done with his practice, and how long it would be before he called.

\--

To be continued


	6. Chapter 6

A couple hours after school let out, Poe was helping B.B. with his homework while they waited for their mom to get home from her job.  As a single parent, she’d worked out a deal with her eldest son: he didn’t have to make dinner if he helped his little brother after school.  Sometimes Poe wished he’d taken kitchen duty instead, but most of the time, he didn’t mind.  He’d been close to B.B. since their father left, when the kid was just a baby and eight-year-old Poe had done his best to pick up the slack.  His mother had explained to him many times that it wasn’t his responsibility to be B.B.’s second parent, but little Poe was determined to prove their small family didn’t need anyone else.  Now, at seventeen, Poe had relaxed enough to treat B.B. like a little brother—and friend—instead, but he still believed the three of them were all each other needed.  Mrs. Dameron hadn’t remarried, although she dated from time to time, and Poe rather selfishly hoped things would stay exactly as they were, at least until he went off to college.

That night, B.B.’s homework consisted of adding and subtracting whole numbers with fractions attached, which B.B. called “mixed numbers” in a tone of both wonder and dread.  He’d caught on quickly enough to finding common denominators earlier in the semester, so Poe assured him he could handle it.  Still, B.B. insisted on stopping after every step of each problem he worked to ask if he was doing it right.  So good-natured Poe sat beside him at the kitchen table and watched, a bit bored but not complaining, as his little brother worked.

A ding from Poe’s phone, resting on the table beside him, finally broke the monotony of fifth grade math.  Poe flicked his thumb over the phone to check the text he’d gotten, and his heart beat a little faster when he saw it was from Kylo.  He opened the message and read, “Can I come over for a minute?  Need to talk.”

“Sure,” Poe texted back.  He had been hoping for a phone call, but seeing Kylo in person would be even better.

“Be there soon,” Kylo responded.

Poe glanced over at his little brother; B.B. appeared to be making good progress on his homework now and hadn’t interrupted himself to ask for Poe’s approval in some time.  Poe hoped that meant he wouldn’t need any more help.

“Hey, buddy, a friend of mine’s coming over in a couple minutes,” Poe told him.  “You gonna be okay on your own?”

“Yeah, I got it,” B.B. muttered; then he glanced up at Poe.  “Who’s coming?  Rey?”

Poe chuckled.  “No, sorry, it’s a guy—Kylo.  He’s Principal Organa’s son.”

“Ohh.  Him.”  B.B. set down his pencil and regarded Poe rather sternly.  “Isn’t he bad?  That’s what everyone in my class says.”

_Oh geez,_ thought Poe.  Aloud, he stammered, “Er, no, he. . . he gets in trouble a lot.  But he’s nice.”

“He’s not going to get _you_ in trouble, is he?” B.B. persisted.  “Mom would be mad.”

“No, he’s not going to get me in trouble,” Poe groaned.  “Look, B.B., you can’t always judge people by what other people say about them.  Kylo’s my friend, okay?  And I wouldn’t be friends with somebody bad, would I?”

“Noooo,” B.B. drawled, “I guess not.”

“Right.”  A movement outside the kitchen window, which opened on the front yard, caught Poe’s eye, and he looked out to see Kylo’s black car pulling up in his driveway.  Poe ruffled B.B.’s hair and told him, “Now you keep working on those mixed numbers, and I’ll check your homework when you’re done.”

“Okay,” sighed B.B.  As he picked up his pencil again, Poe hurried outside, although he paused to comb his fingers through his hair first.  Kylo got out of his car and went up to Poe, giving him a shy, sideways look.

“Hey,” Kylo mumbled.  “I just got done with fencing practice.”  He was wearing a t-shirt and jogging pants, and his hair was nearly soaked through with sweat.  Poe still thought he looked awfully cute.

“Hey.  What’s up?  You want to come in?” Poe offered, but Kylo shook his head.

“I can’t.  Mom’ll be mad if I’m not home right away.”  Kylo looked down at himself.  “I’m. . . kind of sweaty anyway.”  
  
“What’d you need to talk to me about?” Poe asked him.  “Can you still paint tomorrow after school?”

“Yeah, sure.  It. . . it’s not about that.”  Kylo still wasn’t looking at Poe.

“Well, what _is_ it?”  Poe folded his arms and raised an eyebrow at the other boy.  “You’re taking a long time for someone whose mom wants him home right away.”

Kylo finally looked at him.  “Yeah, I—”  He broke off, sighed.  “Forget it, I need to go.  I’ll—I’ll call you later, maybe.”

Poe groaned.  “You came all the way over here to tell me you’d call me, ‘maybe’?”  He was starting to guess Kylo’s real reason for being there—it would certainly explain his nervousness.  _And if I’m right,_ Poe thought, _he’s not leaving until he comes out with it!_   He took a step closer to the taller boy, who in turn actually took a step _backwards_.  Poe smirked and moved forward another step.  This time, when Kylo tried to back up, he backed right into the passenger door of his own car.  Poe grinned outright and went over to him, putting his hands on the roof of the car on either side of Kylo and blocking his escape.

“Well?” Poe persisted as he looked up at Kylo.  “I don’t have all night.  I’m supposed to be helping my brother with his homework.”

Kylo sighed again and gazed back down at the shorter boy who had cornered him.  “Poe, do. . . will you—go with me?  To the prom?”  It was exactly what Poe had predicted he was going to say.

“Yes!” Poe told Kylo, grinning, before he added playfully, “But do you think your mom will approve me as your date?”

Kylo made a face.  “The real question is will she approve _me_ as _your_ date.”  But then he smiled too, and Poe could feel the much taller body between his arms relax.  “Still, I guess I should be the one to turn our names in to her tomorrow.  It’d be weird to make you do it.”  Kylo bit his lower lip and drew it between his teeth; then he rested his hands lightly on Poe’s sides.    When Poe leaned up against him, Kylo tightened his grip.

“I told you I’m sweaty,” Kylo warned.

“I don’t care.”  Poe raised himself on his toes a little and looked up at him from where he leaned on Kylo’s chest.  He was pretty sure Kylo wanted to kiss him, but as with asking Poe to the prom, Kylo was going to have to work for it.  _He owes me that much,_ Poe told himself.

Yet it took Kylo less time than Poe had expected to tilt his head down and touch their mouths together.  Poe felt a pleasant little jolt like he had the first time they kissed.  Kylo drew back a couple inches then kissed Poe again, and this time, Poe felt Kylo’s tongue brush his lips.  Poe parted them and flicked the tip of his tongue against Kylo’s.  Kylo made a soft noise in response, almost a moan, that made Poe’s breath come faster.  He reached up his hands to lace his fingers into Kylo’s damp hair, and he was just thinking about trying for a deeper kiss when Kylo shoved his tongue all the way into Poe’s mouth.

“Mmpgh,” Poe heard himself whimper.  It felt sort of weird, but really good, too, all at the same time.  He pressed close to Kylo and rubbed his tongue against the other boy’s.  After a moment, their mouths broke apart, and Poe dropped down off his toes although he didn’t try to pull out of Kylo’s hands.

“Uh, was. . . was that okay?” Kylo stammered.  He looked as nervous as Poe felt, and Poe wondered if Kylo had liked it as much as he did.

“Yeah,” breathed Poe.  “Was—was I?  I’ve never kissed anyone like that before.”

“Me either.”  Kylo slid his hands a little farther around Poe’s waist, toward his back.  “I’ve. . . never kissed anyone _at all_ , besides you.”

“Really?”  Poe grinned again.

“Really.  And yeah.  You were okay,” Kylo smirked.

“Jerk.”  They looked at each other, both blushing a little, until Poe leaned up to kiss Kylo again.  This time, they both opened their mouths right away, and Poe couldn’t decide what he liked most: the way Kylo’s tongue felt in his mouth, the way his felt in Kylo’s, or the way Kylo’s hands were squeezing his waist.  He pressed up against Kylo’s somewhat damp body as they kissed until they both had to stop for air.

“I. . . I’d better get home,” Kylo mumbled as he looked down at Poe.  “Since I’ve got a reason now to get myself ungrounded for the prom, I need to stay on Mom’s good side.”

“Yeah,” Poe sighed.  As much as he wanted Kylo to stay right there and just keep kissing him, he also didn’t want to get Kylo in trouble.  He stroked his fingers through the taller boy’s long hair and smiled up at him.  “Guess I’ll see you in the morning.  And after school.”

“Yeah.”  Kylo grinned suddenly.  “And Mom’s got a faculty meeting then, so she won’t be walking in on us.”

“Hey, you’re not suggesting we make out instead of paint, are you?” Poe grinned back.  “We have a job to do.”

“Unh hunh.”  Kylo bent his head to murmur close to Poe’s ear, “I can think of some other things I’d like to get done with you, too.”  Poe felt himself blush, hard.  He was used to Kylo being the more reticent one, but Poe liked this mischievous side of him. . . _really_ liked it.

“G-get out of here before you get in trouble again,” Poe stammered.  “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Bossy little rooster.”  Kylo brushed his lips against Poe’s temple as he drew back.

Poe rocked up on his toes to kiss Kylo on the mouth one last time, then pulled away from him with another grin.  Kylo let Poe out of his grasp with some reluctance and waved goodbye before getting in his car.  Poe fairly floated back inside his house, but when he returned to where B.B. was working on his homework, his little brother gave him a steely look.

“Why were you kissing that _boy_?” B.B. asked.

Poe stared at him as his face grew hot.  “You—hey, were you watching us out the window?  Buddy, you really shouldn’t spy on people!”  When B.B. didn’t waver in his glare, Poe sighed and sat down beside him at the table.  “B.B., we were kissing because we like each other.”

“You _like_ like each other?”  B.B.’s face was still skeptical.

“Yeah.  We’re going to the prom together.”  Poe waited for the inevitable question of how two boys could go on a date together, but B.B. had something else on his mind.

“Why would you go with _him_ when you could go with Rey instead?”

Poe sank back in his chair with relief and chuckled.  “Because I don’t like Rey that way.  And she’s going with Finn.”

“Hmph.  Rey’s a lot prettier than that guy.”  B.B. shook his head as if mourning the loss of his big brother’s sanity then shoved his math worksheet over to Poe for him to check it.  “Here.  I finished my homework.”

\--

Kylo had to make a conscious effort to stay under the speed limit as he drove home; he felt like driving as fast as his heart was racing.  Poe—cute, popular, out-of-his-league Poe Dameron—was going to the prom with him.  With _him_.  Kylo still wasn’t sure how he had gotten up the nerve to ask Poe, or why the idea to do so had struck him in the middle of fencing practice, but he was glad now that he’d taken the chance.

_And the way he kissed me. . . ._   Kylo’s heart beat even harder thinking about that, about Poe’s warm mouth and how he’d rubbed his little body up against Kylo’s while they kissed.

“Ugh, stop it,” Kylo muttered to himself and tried to think about the pre-cal homework he hadn’t started instead.  His parents would likely be around when he got home, and he certainly didn’t want to walk in the house visibly turned on from thinking about Poe Dameron.

Mercifully, other thoughts had crowded into his head by the time he parked in their three-car garage: mostly how hungry he was, and how much he wanted a shower, and how little he wanted to do that math homework.  Kylo left his fencing gear in the garage and carried his backpack into the kitchen, intending to find something edible he could take to his room, where he could eat without his parents bugging him.  His mother was nowhere in sight—probably holed up in her office, working—but to Kylo’s dismay, his father, Han, was leaning against the kitchen table watching television and scarfing down cold pizza.

“Hey, Ben,” Han mumbled around a mouthful of pizza.  Kylo rolled his eyes; his whole life, his mother had scolded him for talking with his mouth full, but that certainly didn’t stop Han from doing it too.

“Does Mom know you’re eating that?” Kylo grumbled as he opened the refrigerator to look for something else to eat.  He’d sort of hoped to get the pizza for himself.

Han shrugged.  “She said we’re on our own for dinner tonight.  Want some?”

“No.”  Kylo cast a disgusted look at his father over his shoulder, as if he would prefer starving to eating leftover pizza, then turned back to the refrigerator.  The only thing that wouldn’t require cooking—and therefore, more time in the kitchen with Han—was a tub of hummus, so Kylo grabbed that and a bag of carrots.  After nothing to eat all day except half of Poe’s sandwich, it wasn’t much of a dinner, but Kylo decided he could come back for something else later, once his father had cleared out.

“Leia said you’re helping paint the scenery for your prom,” Han said suddenly.  Kylo slammed the refrigerator door, or as much as he _could_ slam a door with a cushioned seal.  Why was his father always trying to make conversation with him, like they had anything at all in common to talk about?

“Yep,” Kylo muttered.  He realized he’d forgotten to get something to drink and opened the refrigerator again to get a can of soda.

“That’s good that you’re helping out.”

“I have to.”  Soda in hand, Kylo slammed the door again and stalked across the room.  “We all have to do something if we’re gonna go.”

“I wasn’t so sure you _would_ go,” Han pointed out.  He was watching his son with a little smile, the one Kylo always viewed as a slight smirk and which he hated.  _He thinks he has me all figured out,_ the boy fumed.

“Yeah, well, I am,” he said aloud.

“Decided who you’re going to ask yet?”  Han was still smiling, damn him.  “It’s a big decision, and it can’t hurt to have a backup plan in case she says no.”

And then, suddenly, Kylo hit upon a way both to annoy his father and to show Han he didn’t have Kylo all figured out after all.

“I already asked someone,” Kylo informed him with a smirk, “and _he_ said yes.”  He got just the reaction he’d hoped for: Han stared at him.

“You’re. . . taking a _boy_ to the prom?”

“Yeah,” Kylo shot back.  “So what?”  He decided that was a good line with which to make a dramatic exit, and he left Han in the kitchen, gaping after him.

An hour later, Kylo was at his desk in his room, finishing up the pre-cal homework he’d started after his snack and a quick shower.  He hadn’t wanted to do it at all, and under normal circumstances, he _wouldn’t_ have.  He was doing well enough on his tests in the class, and he understood the concepts without practicing them.  But then Kylo had thought about how Poe always did _his_ homework, and how disappointed Poe would be in him for brushing it off.  After that, he’d gotten to work.

Kylo jumped when he heard a knock on his closed bedroom door.  He glared at it and thought about telling whoever was there to go away.  He supposed he should have known that one parent or the other—or both of them—would want to question him about what he’d told his father.

The knock sounded again, more forceful this time, and Kylo sighed, “Come in.”

When the door opened, his mother was the one who looked in on him.  “Are you busy, Ben?”

“Pre-cal homework,” Kylo muttered, then relented, “But I’m almost done.”  No point in putting the conversation off since he knew Leia would just come back later.  She nodded and came all the way into his room, shutting the door behind her.

“Your father said he was talking to you about the prom,” Leia began, fixing her large, dark eyes on her son, “and you told him you were going with another boy.”  That was Leia for you, no beating around the bush.  Kylo had a hard time meeting her steady gaze, and he looked back down at his math notebook while he fiddled with his pencil.

“Yep.”

“Are you really?  Or were you just saying it to shock him?”

Kylo scowled.  As if he would make something like that up just to shock his father!  . . . Although, that _was_ the whole reason he’d told Han in the first place, for the shock value.

“I really am.  I’m going to the prom with a boy.  What’s it to _him_?” Kylo grumbled.

Leia ignored the question for the moment and asked, “Who is he?”  When Kylo shot her a glare, the side of her mouth turned up in a faint smile.  “You’ll have to tell me anyway.  That’s the downside of your mother also being the principal.”  There were a lot more downsides to it than that, in Kylo’s opinion, but he supposed it did make a sort of funny joke.  _Sort of_.

Kylo looked away again as he mumbled, “Poe Dameron.”

“Poe?  Really?”  He didn’t need to look at her to see that she was surprised; that much was evident from her tone of voice.  When Kylo nodded, Leia told him, “Well, I’m glad to hear it.”

“You. . . _are_?”  Kylo looked up at his mother again.  He didn’t want to, but he couldn’t help it.  She was smiling more fully now, gently.

“Yes, I am.  Poe’s a very sweet boy.  I had no idea that you two were even friends.”

Kylo felt his cheeks grow hot at the weirdness of it all, his mother standing there chatting about him being gay for Poe Dameron as if there was nothing at all unusual about it.

“So is Dad mad about it?” Kylo muttered.  Not that he _cared_ , but there had to be some reason for Han to make a big deal about it to Leia, a big enough deal for her to come question Kylo.

“No, he’s not mad.”  For the first time in their conversation, Leia hesitated.  Then she went on, in a tone as gentle as her smile had been although she wasn’t smiling now.  “Ben, honey, neither of us is going to be angry at you for liking another boy.  Your father’s _surprised_ , but that’s all.”

Kylo immediately picked up on what she _didn’t_ say.  “And you’re not?”

“Well, like I said, I thought you might just be trying to shock Han. . . but no, I’m not surprised.  Except maybe about Poe being the one you’re dating,” she amended as that faint smile returned.

“We’re not _dating,_ ” Kylo protested.  “He’s not my boyfriend or anything.  It’s just. . . just the prom,” he finished more weakly.  That was sort of a lie, but he didn’t feel like explaining that he had gone to the Valentine’s dance with Poe too.

“But you _do_ like him.”  It wasn’t a question.

“ _Mom_ ,” groaned Kylo.  When she didn’t relent and kept watching him, still smiling, he gave in.  “ _Yes_ , I like him.  Okay?”  He glared back down at his math homework, cheeks warm again, and muttered more to himself than to her what he had never had the courage to voice before.  “I’m gay.  And I want to be with Poe.”

“Then asking him to the prom sounds like a good place to start.”  Leia said it so matter-of-factly, Kylo stared back up at her in amazement, but she was already turned away from him, opening his door.  “Get that homework finished,” she went on, “then come get something else to eat.  You need more than hummus for dinner, especially on the days you have fencing.”

After she had gone, shutting the door behind her, Kylo returned to his homework feeling slightly bewildered.

“No wonder she likes Poe so much,” he muttered to himself.  “She sounds just like him.”

\--

To be continued


	7. Chapter 7

By the time Poe got to homeroom the next morning, everyone was already talking about the two major changes made to the prom poster in the last twenty-four hours: Poe and Kylo were going to the prom together. . . and Phasma and Hux _weren’t_.  Poe had heard kids whispering in the hall when he walked by, but he hadn’t known why until now.  It made him blush a little, but he also sort of liked the attention.  Kylo _had_ said once that everyone talked about Poe anyway—at least now, the gossip would put a stop to some of the false rumors over whom Poe was dating.

Even Rey gave him a smug, sideways look when he sat down in the desk next to hers, but she didn’t say anything.  Poe himself was interested in finding out what was up with Phasma and Hux, and he even thought about asking Phasma directly when she got to class a moment later.  She certainly didn’t seem broken up about it—she was even _smiling_ a little.  Before Poe could strike up a conversation, though, Kylo came in, and Poe pretty much forgot everything else.

The taller boy smiled at Poe, slightly, and started past him.  But then Kylo hesitated, and after a second, he slouched into the desk behind Poe, who turned around and grinned at him.

“You’d better not get me in trouble,” Poe teased him.

“Then you’d better not tempt me to,” Kylo retorted with a smirk.  Poe decided that _he_ was the one being tempted as he stared at Kylo’s mouth and remembered kissing it the night before.

Pre-calculus, their first class after homeroom, had barely even begun when Kylo leaned forward and dropped a note over Poe’s shoulder to land on his desk in front of him.  Poe rolled his eyes even though getting a note from Kylo made his heart beat a little faster.

“I’ll sit with you guys at lunch,” Kylo had written.  His handwriting was as messy as Poe would have expected, and he wrote most of his letters like small capitals, even for words that shouldn’t be capitalized.  Underneath, he’d added, “You look really cute today.”  Poe blushed harder than he had in the hall, even if it was a pretty dorky thing to write.

“Good, but you’re going to get us in trouble passing notes,” he wrote back in handwriting far neater than Kylo’s.  “But you look cute too.”  He thought a minute then wrote, “What happened with Hux and Phasma?”  When their math teacher turned to write on the white board, Poe reached over his shoulder to toss the note back on Kylo’s desk.  He got it back again after a couple minutes.

“Don’t know.  Haven’t talked to them,” it said.  Poe tried to think of something else to write, but couldn’t, and anyway, he really didn’t want to get in trouble.  Instead, he stuck the note in the back of his calculus book; he wanted to keep it.

_I guess I’m the dorky one here,_ Poe thought with a little smile, _but I’m crazy about him. . . ._   He tried to concentrate on pre-cal, but he spent most of the class thinking about kissing the boy behind him.

When class was over, he and Kylo walked out together, trailing after the other kids although both Rey and Phasma looked back at them before they left.

“Guess I’ll see you at lunch,” Kylo muttered when they stopped outside the classroom in the hall, before separating to go to their next classes.  “I’ll wait for you outside.”

“Okay.”  Poe looked up at him; Kylo was looking back, dark eyes fixed on Poe’s face.  He flushed and glanced away when Poe caught him staring, but Poe just grinned.  “I’m glad you’re sitting with us.”

“Yeah.”  Still not looking at him, Kylo mumbled in a low voice, “I wish I could kiss you right now.  I thought about you all night.”  His words sent a delightful little shiver down Poe’s back.

“Me too,” Poe whispered back.  “This afternoon, okay?  _After_ we paint,” he added when Kylo finally glanced back at him and smirked.

“ _After_?  Really?”

Poe nodded, but he could feel his resolve already weakening.  “Y-yeah.  After.”

“Fine,” Kylo sighed.  “I gotta get to class, or I’m gonna be late again.”  He turned away but, at the same time, reached out to brush the back of Poe’s hand with his fingertips.  Poe shivered again, harder, at the other boy’s touch.

“See you at lunch,” he called as he turned to go to his own class, trying not to let on how much Kylo got to him.

\--

Kylo felt Poe’s hand tremble when he touched it, and that kept him smiling all the way to biology.  He _had_ thought about Poe until he fell asleep the night before, but most of those thoughts had been Kylo doubting himself.  Poe wasn’t _really_ going to the prom with him, was he?  It was still six weeks away, and Poe would change his mind before then.  Or even if they _did_ go together, it wasn’t like Poe would ever want to be Kylo’s boyfriend, or like their relationship could possibly last, or. . . .

But then, Poe had looked so happy to see him when Kylo got to class that morning, and Kylo had seen the way the smaller boy shivered when Kylo said he wanted to kiss him.  It was basically a miracle, but Poe really did like him too.

Kylo made it to biology in time and sunk down into a desk in the back of the room, hopefully where Mr. Ackbar wouldn’t pay much attention to him.  Kylo’s mind was never on biology anyway, and today, all he could think about was how soft Poe’s hand had felt, and how it had trembled at Kylo’s touch.  Kylo had a hard time touching Poe, even just his hand, when people might see them, but it was worth it to feel Poe shake like that.  Kylo knew other kids were talking about the two of them; he’d heard the whispers that morning just like Poe had.  He hated being talked about, especially when it involved Poe, but then, in another way, Kylo liked it too.  He enjoyed attention, and well. . . if everyone was talking about how he’d scored a date with Poe Dameron, they were certainly paying attention to him.

_Really, Hux was the only one saying anything bad about me and Poe in the first place_ , Kylo realized.  He glanced over at Hux, who was seated alone in his usual spot since Phasma had moved to a different desk.  _And now **I’m** the one who has a prom date, and he doesn’t!  They really must have had a fight._   Kylo sort of wished he’d been keeping up with the two of them better, just so he’d know what was going on, but he had more important things to think about anyway.

He felt a little less optimistic by lunch time, when he sat at his table and waited for Poe, Rey, and Finn.  He was as ambivalent about sitting with them as he was being the subject of gossip: excited about seeing Poe but nervous about seeing Rey and Finn.  Kylo didn’t like either of them much, but he knew he’d have to get used to them if he was going to be around Poe.  Poe would never give up hanging out with his friends—and Kylo would never ask him to.  Still, he cringed a little when he saw the three of them come out into the courtyard.  Finn and Rey were talking about something, but Poe was looking for him.  Kylo’s heart quickened at the way Poe’s beautiful eyes lit up when they landed on him.  Poe hurried over to him, leaving his two friends to follow.

“Hey,” Poe said as he sat down on the bench next to Kylo.

“Hey,” Kylo murmured.  Before he could decide if he should touch Poe again or not, Poe’s smaller hand clamped down over his on the bench between them and squeezed.  Kylo smiled and pushed his long fingers up between Poe’s to hold them.

Rey and Finn sat down on the other side of the round table.  Kylo nodded at them, hoping they didn’t expect him to talk to them.  To his dismay, Finn started right in on him, grinning the whole time.

“So what’d your mom say when you turned Poe in as your date?” he chuckled.

“Nothing,” muttered Kylo.  He pulled his hand away from Poe’s to get out his lunch, which he had, after all, remembered that morning.

“Nothing, really?” Finn persisted.  “I bet she freaked out!”

Kylo glared at him from across the table.  Getting along with Poe’s friends was going to be even harder than he’d realized.  “Why would she?”

“Uh. . . .”  Finn trailed off, intimidated, but Rey picked right up where he’d left off.

“Because Poe’s a boy, duh.”  She didn’t flinch when Kylo turned his glare on her instead.  “And because he’s _Poe_.”

“Guys, stop,” Poe groaned.  He was blushing, and he glanced up at Kylo with a worried look.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kylo snapped at Rey, although he thought he knew.  It meant Hux _wasn’t_ the only one who thought Poe was too good for Kylo.

“You two are complete opposites,” Rey elaborated.  She bit into an apple—a rather large bite, for a girl—and chewed before she continued.  “Poe’s like the best student in the whole school, and you. . . you have that whole ‘bad boy’ thing going on.  Totally different aesthetics.”

“Oh.”  Kylo felt his own cheeks warm, not because of what she had said but because he had misjudged her meaning.

“Well, maybe I like bad boys,” Poe informed her with a smirk.

“I didn’t know you liked boys at _all_ ,” Rey pointed out.  “But I guess you two are kind of cute together.”

“I’m not _cute,_ ” Kylo retorted.

Rey raised an eyebrow at him then cast a significant look at Poe.  “That’s not what I hear.”

Poe sighed, “Rey, shut _up_.”  Kylo relaxed a little seeing Poe’s friends tease Poe just as much as they were teasing Kylo.  Plus, he liked hearing that Poe thought he was cute, no matter the source.

Still, Kylo decided to spare Poe from further embarrassment by changing the subject back to his mother.  “Whatever.  And no, Mom didn’t ‘freak out.’  She likes Poe.”

“Poe, what’d _your_ mom say?” Finn asked.  Poe shrugged and looked down at his sandwich.

“I. . . haven’t told her yet.”

“Oh.”  Finn and Rey looked at each other, and Kylo wondered what _that_ meant.  Would Poe’s mother have a problem with him taking her son to the prom?  He’d never even seen her before, but maybe she knew of Kylo’s reputation. . . or maybe she just wouldn’t want her son dating another boy.

“Hey Poe, I almost forgot,” Rey said abruptly, as if _she_ wanted to change the subject now.  “Our committee’s almost finished the design for the t-shirts!  We’re going to take orders next week and get them to the printer’s, so we can have them ready before the prom.”

“Oh, I wanna see!”  Poe leaned forward to look at the piece of typing paper Rey passed to him.  Kylo looked too to see a rather badly-drawn design of two clock faces, one partially behind the other.

“Get it?  ‘Cos our theme is ‘Time after Time’?” Finn laughed.

“It kind of sucks,” said Kylo.

All three of the others stared at him, Rey in particular.

“Excuse me?” she snapped.  Still, Kylo didn’t feel too guilty about it until Poe’s expression changed from surprise to disappointment.

“That’s not very nice to say,” Poe pointed out.

Kylo sighed.  “Sorry.  I didn’t mean the _idea_ sucks.  Just the drawing.”

“ _Kylo_ ,” Poe moaned.

“Well, if you’re such a great artist, here.”  Rey held out a sharp pencil as she glared equally-sharp daggers at him.  “Let’s see you do something better.”

Kylo thought about refusing—but then he thought about a hundred other responses too, ranging from breaking the damn pencil to getting up and leaving them there, Poe or no Poe.  But then, looking down at the lopsided clocks, he ended up silently taking the pencil from her and pulling out a textbook to put under the paper for a better drawing surface.

“Look,” he muttered as he hovered the pencil’s point over the paper.  “Like I said, the idea is—well, it’s a little corny, but so’s the theme, so yeah, the clock thing is kind of clever.  But the clock in front should at least be round.”

“It _is_ round,” Rey sniffed.  Kylo glanced up at her without lifting his head, which was bent over the drawing; then he sketched some pencil strokes to even out the lumpy clock face into an actual circle.  To his gratification, he heard Finn give a muffled snicker.

“And. . . you could make it look more interesting by stylizing the numbers,” Kylo murmured, more to himself than to the others as he got absorbed in what he was doing.  He rewrote the numbers on the clock (moving them into the correct positions at the same time), varying the thickness of the lines and adding serifs.  “Make the hands more elaborate too—and the time should be significant.  Like midnight?  Or five minutes ‘til?”

“What, like in _Cinderella_?  You afraid Poe’s gonna run away at midnight?” Finn snorted.

“Shut up, Finn,” Poe said, although the admonition sounded automatic.  With more enthusiasm, he told Kylo, “Yeah, do five minutes to midnight, because if it was exactly twelve, the hands would be on top of each other and wouldn’t show as good.”

“Yeah.”  Kylo smiled a little at Poe’s encouragement as he erased the existing hands entirely and redrew them as filigreed arrows pointed at the designated time.

“Okay, okay,” Rey sighed.  “I’ll admit it.  It looks better.”  Kylo finally braved a direct look at her; her expression was more open, and she didn’t seem so mad at him anymore.

“What kind of clocks are they?” Kylo asked her.

“Hunh?  They’re just. . . clocks.”

“Like, could they be watches?  Pocket watches?”  At her puzzled look, he explained, “I think a steampunk theme would really work for this.”

“You do?”  This time, Rey raised _both_ eyebrows at him.  “I never would have thought _you_ liked steampunk.  Talk about something not being your aesthetic.”

“I _hate_ steampunk,” Kylo informed her.  “Bunch of pretentious-looking bullshit if you ask me.  But. . . prom is mostly pretentious bullshit, and if we’re doing a time-travel thing, steampunk makes sense.”

“Prom is pretentious B.S., hunh?” Poe put in.  Kylo thought the fact that he wouldn’t say “bullshit” was utterly adorable.  He looked at the smaller boy, who was smirking at him.  “And here I thought you were excited about going with me.  Maybe I should find another date.”

“Don’t you _dare_ ,” Kylo growled.  He was fairly sure Poe was just joking, but just in case, he mumbled, “And yeah, I’m excited about going with you.  I did say it was _mostly_ pretentious bullshit.”

Poe’s smirk softened into an actual smile, and, since Kylo’s hand was occupied with the pencil, Poe put his hand on Kylo’s leg instead, just above his knee.  Kylo swallowed hard.

“So are you going to draw the pretentious pocket watches, or are you just going to flirt with Poe?” Rey finally snapped in exasperation.  “Lunch is almost _over_.”

Kylo glowered at her and went back to drawing, although Poe’s warm hand on his leg made it difficult to concentrate.  Around the front-most clock face, Kylo sketched the shape of a pocket watch; then he considered the other clock.

“This one should be turned some, to make it look three-dimensional,” he murmured.  He drew over it, outlining an identical watch rotated at an oblique angle.  “And like. . . some pretentious bullshit gears in the background.”  He sketched those in too as he kept talking.  “Then pick some kind of font that looks. . . steampunky to do the theme and the dates and whatever above and below this.  What would look _really_ awesome would be to have the shirts in black, and the design be metallic in copper or gold. . . but that’s probably way expensive.  Anyway.  Here.”

He shoved the paper and pencil back in Rey’s direction.  She and Finn both looked down at the drawing a moment.

“Kylo, this. . . is really good,” Rey finally admitted.  She looked at him with an expression of mixed surprise and admiration.  “You should have been on the t-shirt committee.”

“Blame Phasma,” Kylo shrugged.  “Although. . . I kinda like the committee I’m on.”  He hazarded a smile at Poe, who beamed back at him.

“I like it too,” the smaller boy whispered to him.  “But Rey’s right,” he added a bit louder, “you’re really good at drawing.  The design looks a lot better now.”

“Thanks a lot, Poe,” Rey sighed.

Kylo ignored her and kept looking at Poe.  “You really think it’s good?”

“Yeah.  Really.”  Poe squeezed his leg, and that time, Kylo was the one to shiver.  He liked how Poe’s hand felt on his leg—he liked it a _lot_.  The bell rang to end lunch before Kylo could think of anything else to say, but that was all right.  He was starting to feel a little nervous, and anyway, Finn and Rey were looking at each other in a way that said they were tired of watching Poe and Kylo flirt.

“Well, it _does_ look pretty good,” Finn said as he got up.  “Thanks, dude.  We’ll show it to the rest of the shirt committee today and see what they think.  Hey Poe,” he added, “you still coming over tonight?”

“Yeah, sure.”  As the rest of them stood, Poe looked up at Kylo.  “Are you still grounded?  We were gonna watch a movie after dinner.”

“Yeah,” Kylo muttered.  “Still grounded.”  He had the feeling Finn wouldn’t appreciate him showing up for their movie night anyway.

“Okay,” Poe said.  “I’ll see you after school to paint, then.”

“Yeah.  See you.”  Kylo grabbed his bag and started off for his next class, leaving the three of them at the table.  He didn’t understand how he felt, ambivalent again: he was happy that he’d impressed Poe with his drawing, but he was also embarrassed that Poe had told the others he was grounded.  He couldn’t even really be irritated with Poe for it, though, since Poe was trying so hard to make them all get along.

_And I guess they **are** being nice to me,_ Kylo thought as he got to his history class.  _I just don’t know if they really want me around.  Maybe they think I’m taking Poe away from them—even if he’s hanging out with them this weekend instead of me._

\--

To be continued


	8. Chapter 8

Unlike on Wednesday, Poe hurried to the gym after school that day.  This time, he was eager to see Kylo, even if the other boy had acted a little weird at the end of lunch.  Poe wasn’t sure what kind of mood he would be in, but Kylo smiled at him when Poe joined him backstage in front of the panels they were painting.

“Hey,” Poe mumbled, feeling shy now that they were finally alone.

“Hey.  I, uh. . . I got a projector.”  Kylo gestured to the equipment at his feet; a sleek black laptop was already connected to it with a USB cable.  “And my computer,” Kylo went on, “so I can find clipart of whatever we want to paint, and we can project it up on the boards and trace it.”

“Cool!”  Poe dropped his book bag on the dusty wooden floor and took a nervous step toward Kylo.  “Um. . . I thought maybe you were mad or something.  You left awful quick after lunch.”

“Oh.  No.  Just. . . not used to being around your friends.”  Kylo shrugged.  “I don’t think they like me much.”

“Well, you _did_ pretty much tell Rey she can’t draw,” Poe pointed out.  “I mean, it’s _true_ , but still, you could have been nicer about it.”

“Oh,” Kylo frowned.  “Sorry.  I guess.”

Poe had to laugh at the awkward half-apology.  “It’s okay—just try harder next time, all right?  Anyway, you _did_ make the design look a lot better.  If you can draw that well free-hand, tracing stuff should be super easy.”  When Kylo didn’t react, Poe persisted, “You _sure_ you’re not mad?”

Finally, the taller boy seemed to relax, and he smiled again.  “ _Yes_ , I’m sure.  Now what were those great ideas you had that we’re going to paint?”

Poe edged a little closer.  “You’re not even going to _try_ to kiss me first?”

“Hey, you were the one who said we had to wait until after we finished working,” Kylo teased him, even as he went over to Poe and put his hands on Poe’s shoulders.  “But I thought about it all day,” Kylo added in a whisper.

“Me too.”  Poe leaned up on his toes and braced his arms on Kylo’s shoulders so he could reach the other boy’s mouth.  He kissed Kylo lightly at first, but he didn’t try to pull back, either, when Kylo pressed their mouths together harder.  After a minute, Poe dropped his heels back to the floor and smiled at Kylo’s sulky expression.

“ _Now_ you get to hear my great ideas,” Poe said as he took a couple steps back so he wouldn’t be so tempted to make out instead of work.

Kylo sighed.  “Okay, fine.  What were you thinking?”

“Okay, so we’re doing a time travel theme, right?” Poe began.  “So at first I was thinking spaceships or time machines or something, but then, I thought that’s kind of boring.  So instead, we could have it be like you’re _walking_ through time instead!  Like we start with the distant past at the entrance—maybe dinosaurs or a jungle or something—then you get columns like in ancient Greece and Rome.  Then medieval stuff, then—I don’t know, Victorian something?  Since we have the steampunk thing on the shirts?  Then something for today, I don’t know what, _then_ at the back, the spaceships and stuff for the future!”

By the time Poe stopped for breath, Kylo was grinning at how excited he’d gotten.  Poe blushed and gave him a shy grin back.  “I really am kind of a dork, aren’t I?”

Kylo chuckled.  “Yeah, kinda.  But in a good way.  And that’s a better idea than anything I could have come up with.”  He dropped to the floor and sat cross-legged in front of his computer.  “I don’t think we can get _all_ of that traced today, but maybe some jungle-y stuff and the columns—those should be easy.  Then we can figure out the rest of it over the weekend, and get it drawn next week so we can start painting it in.”

Poe watched while Kylo downloaded the pictures for them to trace, then set up the projector.  He did it all far quicker than Poe could have, leading Poe to admire him more than ever.  _So he fences, he can draw, **and** he’s good with computers,_ Poe thought as he studied the other boy.  _I wonder what else he can do that he’s never told any of us about?_

While Kylo’s head was bent forward as he adjusted the projector, the strands of hair that normally hung by his ears fell around his face instead.  Poe wanted to touch Kylo’s hair, to stroke it back and kiss his face all over, starting with his high forehead and ending with his mouth. . . or _not_ ending, as the case may be.  Poe thought he could kiss Kylo’s mouth for hours.

“How’s that?”

“Hunh?”  Poe forced himself back to reality when he realized Kylo was talking to him.  “How’s what?”

“The projection, dummy,” Kylo sighed, pointing to one wooden panel lit by a pattern of fern leaves.  “Is it clear enough to trace?  And does it look enough like a jungle?”

“Oh—yeah, it looks great,” Poe agreed.  “I guess we need to do two, one for each side of the entrance?”

“Yeah, then we can sort of do a few leaves at the start of the next panel to overlap where the columns will begin,” Kylo said.  Poe was impressed at the idea of blending one scene into another, which hadn’t even occurred to him.  Before he could say anything about it, though, Kylo tossed a Sharpie marker to him.  “Start tracing.  You can do the ones on the bottom, and I’ll do the top.”

“And you call _me_ bossy,” Poe grumbled playfully.  He started working on the bottom left corner of the panel, while Kylo began at the top right.  The work went even quicker than they had thought, and each finished his half in about fifteen minutes.  Working together, they slid the second panel in front of the projector to trace the same design; then Kylo directed Poe in how to do the overlap of designs to transition between eras.  All told, it took only a little over an hour for them to finish the work they’d planned for the day.

Poe stepped back to admire their accomplishment.  “It looks great!  Kylo, you’re a really good artist.”

Kylo looked down as he mumbled, “Not really.  I mean, it was just tracing, and you did half of it.”

“But _your_ half looks a lot better than mine!  My lines are all wobbly, and yours aren’t.”  Poe turned to Kylo and smiled at him.  “Stop being so modest!  You’re talented.” 

“Your half looks fine,” Kylo insisted, though still without looking up.  Poe went over to him and finally got to run his fingers through the hair that half-obscured the other boy’s face, pushing it back so Kylo had to look at him.

“We make a good team, don’t we?” Poe murmured.

Finally, Kylo smiled a little too.  “Yeah. . . we do.”  He covered Poe’s hand with his and looked down at Poe a moment before speaking again.  “So, um. . . can we make out now?”

Poe laughed and blushed at the same time. “Y-yeah, I guess so.  If it won’t make you late getting home.”  He pressed up against Kylo and put his free arm around him.  Kylo squeezed his hand then dropped it to wrap his own arms around Poe.

“Mom said I can get off from being grounded next Friday,” Kylo said.  “So I can go out with you that night.  If—if you want to.”

“Yeah, I’d like that.”  Poe rested his cheek on Kylo’s chest as he looked up at him.  “What. . . what did she say about us going to the prom together?”

“Heh.  She was _glad_.”  Kylo shrugged then bent his head and gave Poe a kiss on the forehead.  “She really likes you.  My dad was weirded out, but who cares about _him_.  He’ll get over it.”

“I don’t know what my mom will say when I tell her,” Poe muttered.

The worried and slightly hurt look Kylo gave him made Poe feel bad he’d even mentioned it.  “You. . . you think she won’t let you go with me?” Kylo asked.

“No, it’s not that!” Poe reassured him.  “I told her I went to the other dance with you, and she was fine with it—but she thought it was just so we could both get in.  Prom is. . . is different.”

“Yeah?”  Kylo’s worried expression faded a little, and he rested his forehead against Poe’s and whispered, “You mean you didn’t say yes to me just so we both could get in?”

“Maaaybe,” Poe teased him in return.  “Maybe I like you.  A little.”

“Yeah?” Kylo breathed again.  His mouth was temptingly close to Poe’s.  “Maybe I like you too.  Maybe I think you’re really cute.”

“Maybe I think _you’re_ really hot,” Poe whispered back.  Kylo caught his breath in surprise.

“You do?”

“Yeah.”  Poe tilted his head up to kiss him.

Kylo opened his mouth a little as he returned the kiss, but then he drew back to mumble, “Let’s sit down.  You’re so short, I can’t reach your mouth good enough.”

“It’s not because I’m short.  It’s because you’re too tall!” Poe retorted.  He grinned when Kylo rolled his eyes and pulled him over to the wall by his hand.  Ignoring the dust, Kylo sat on the floor, his back propped up against the wall, and tugged on Poe’s hand until the shorter boy sat down close beside him.  Even though he’d been the one to suggest making out, Kylo just looked at Poe with a nervous expression until Poe put his arms back around him; then Poe finally felt Kylo’s body relax and Kylo’s arms encircle him too.

“I like how this feels,” Poe murmured.  “I’m glad you’re bigger than me, even if you make fun of me, because you feel so nice when you hold me.”

“I-I like it too,” Kylo stammered.  “You’re so little and. . . and _cute_.”  He hugged Poe closer against him and kissed his lips softly.  “I—I think you’re hot too, Poe.  Really hot.  I’ve thought so since I first started noticing stuff like that.”

Poe felt his face grow warm; it was a little embarrassing to hear Kylo talk about him that way, but it was really flattering at the same time.

“Then why weren’t you nicer to me?” he pouted, half teasing and half serious.  “I mean, before we went to the dance together.  You never talked to me.  You just glared at me all the time.”

“I was afraid you’d find out I liked you,” admitted Kylo.

“ _Why?_ ” Poe persisted.

Kylo shrugged again.  “I didn’t think you’d ever like me back.”

“Well, I _do_.  I like you a lot.”  Poe looked at the other boy’s somewhat anxious face and kissed him again before whispering, “And—I know I tease you a lot about being a slacker or a jerk, but. . . but I don’t mean it.  I like you the way you are, Kylo.  I don’t want you to change.”

Poe felt Kylo’s arms tighten around him.  “Seriously?”

“Yeah,” Poe nodded.  “As long as you’re not being mean to me, you’re—you’re _perfect_.”

Kylo exhaled in a short laugh.  “Oh no I’m not.”

“I mean, perfect for _me_.”  Poe smiled at the way his words made Kylo blush.  “I still want you to do your homework and remember your lunch and stuff like that—but because it’s better for _you_ that way.  I want you to be happy.  But I’d like you no matter what.”

“I don’t know if doing homework makes me _happy_ ,” Kylo pointed out, “but I guess not being hungry helps.  But you know what _really_ makes me happy?”

“What?”

Kylo’s voice dropped to a whisper, and he looked into Poe’s eyes.  “Being with you.”

Poe’s face positively flared with heat.  “That’s so sappy.  I mean, I _like_ it, but it’s sappy.  You’re as much of a dork as I am.”

Kylo grinned and moved one hand from Poe’s back to touch his face, then rested his thumb on Poe’s lower lip.  “I thought we were gonna make out,” he murmured.  “I want to kiss these pretty lips of yours.”

“I’m not _pretty_ ,” Poe protested, trying to sulk even though he secretly enjoyed hearing Kylo say it.  _It sounds like something you’d say to a girl.  So why do I like it so much?_ Poe wondered.

“ _Yeah_ you are.  And your mouth is so soft. . . .”  Kylo moved his thumb so he could touch his mouth to Poe’s.  Their lips moved against each other for a moment; then Poe ran out of patience and pushed his tongue into Kylo’s mouth.

Kylo moaned and put his hand to the back of Poe’s hand, lacing his fingers into the smaller boy’s dark hair and holding him still while he delved into Poe’s mouth.  Poe lost all track of time as they kissed.  Occasionally, their mouths would break apart for them to catch their breath, but then they’d come back together again hard.  After a few minutes, Poe pushed Kylo back against the wall and pressed against him until Kylo folded an arm around his waist and half-lifted, half-pulled Poe into his lap, hooking one long leg over Poe’s.  Even in Kylo’s lap, Poe felt like he couldn’t get close enough to the other boy.  Kylo was rubbing Poe’s back with one hand as they kissed, and Poe wished he could feel that touch on his bare skin, but he was too shy even to suggest lifting his shirt.  Still, thinking about it made him wonder what Kylo’s hand would feel like touching other parts of him, and Poe involuntarily moaned into Kylo’s mouth.

“Mmn,” Kylo hummed in response, and when they next broke the kiss, he was smiling as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.  “I like the noise you make when I kiss you.  It’s so hot.”

Poe swallowed and rubbed his own, rather sore, lips.  He decided not to tell Kylo what he had been thinking about.  “I—I just really like kissing you,” he mumbled.

“I like it too.”  Kylo shifted his weight to pull his phone out of his pocket, then groaned when he looked at it.  “Shit, it’s almost 4:30—Mom’s meeting’ll be over by now.  I’ve gotta get home.”

“Sorry.  I should have been paying attention to the time.”  Poe started to get up, tugging his shirt down to hide how turned on he’d gotten.  Even when Kylo pulled Poe back down in his lap for one more quick kiss, Poe couldn’t tell if Kylo had had the same reaction or not, and Poe didn’t want to embarrass himself in case he hadn’t.

Kylo finally got to his feet once he let Poe up.  The taller boy winced a little and muttered, “Ow, my leg went to sleep.  Shouldn’t have had that one under you.”

“Sorry,” Poe said again, but Kylo just laughed.

“Quit apologizing.  I was the one who wanted to make out.”  As he looked down at Poe, his expression softened until he looked almost sad.

“Are you okay?” Poe asked him.

“Yeah.  Just—I wish I wasn’t grounded.  I won’t get to see you again until Monday,” Kylo sighed.  “I’ll be stuck at home this weekend, while you’re out having a good time with—with someone else.”

“Just Finn,” Poe chuckled.  “Maybe Rey if she even wants to do anything this weekend.  And you and I can text or talk on the phone or whatever, if your mom will let you.”

Kylo shrugged.  “Yeah, I’m just grounded from leaving the house, not from the phone.”

“Then I’ll call you tonight, okay?” Poe smiled, wanting to cheer him up.  “And next Friday we’ll go see a movie or something.”

“Okay.”  Kylo smiled a little, but he still appeared reticent, as if he were holding something back.  Poe tried to guess what it was, then remembered how Kylo had mentioned him “having a good time with someone else.”

“Um, Kylo. . . .”  Poe went over to him and hugged him tight.  “I’m not gonna, like, go out on a date with anyone else, okay?  And you know my friends are _just_ my friends, right?”

“Yeah, I know.”  Nevertheless, Poe felt Kylo’s tense body relax in his arms as the other boy hugged him back.  “You—you don’t have to. . . not do things because of me.  You can hang out with whoever you want.”

“Of course I can,” Poe declared, tilting his head back to look up at the taller boy, “but I don’t want to do _more_ than hang out with anyone but you.”

Finally, Kylo gave him a real smile.  “Okay.  Good.  Because I feel the same way.”  He kissed Poe again, gently this time, before letting him go to pack up his laptop and the projector in his backpack.  “And now I’ve _really_ gotta go, or I won’t be ungrounded next weekend after all.”

Poe picked up his own stuff and walked with Kylo out to the parking lot.  Kylo put his backpack in the trunk of his car then looked back down at Poe.  “I’ll—I’ll talk to you tonight, I guess.”

“Yeah,” Poe grinned, “you will.  Bye, Kylo.”

“Bye.”  Kylo turned to the driver’s door, then paused and turned back.  “Uh, Poe?  You can. . . you can call me Ben if you want to.”

“Really?” Poe asked.  “I mean, do you—what do you _want_ me to call you?”

The other boy glanced down, then back up at Poe with another smile.  “Ben.  If you’re gonna kiss me like that, you might as well use my real name.”  He added in a mock warning, “But nobody else gets to!  So don’t let Rey and Finn get any ideas.”

Poe was smiling, but not at the joke.  _I really must mean something to him,_ he thought with some pride.  _He trusts me. . . ._

“Okay,” he said aloud.  “Bye. . . Ben.”

“Bye, Poe.”  Ben gazed at him a second before getting in his car.  Poe drifted off to his own car, lost in a slew of feelings that were mostly new to him.  Being with Ben made him happy and excited, sure, but he also felt anxious and confused.

_What **is** Mom gonna say?_ Poe wondered as he got in his car and sat still in the driver’s seat.  _I’ve gotta tell her I’m going to the prom with a boy before B.B. says something about it in front of her.  But it’s not just a prom date. . . ._   He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, thinking about just how _much_ he liked being with Ben, emotionally _and_ physically.  Poe had always considered himself to be open-minded, and having a crush on another boy hadn’t bothered him.

_But it’s not just a crush,_ he realized.  _I’ve liked girls before too, but not like **this**._   He’d never kissed a girl the way he kissed Ben, and while Poe had had a girlfriend from time to time, all those relationships now felt childish in comparison to what he wanted now.  _I want to be **his** boyfriend.  And I want him to tell me I’m pretty, and touch me all over, and get turned on when I kiss him._   For all of Poe’s beliefs in his own open-mindedness, he suddenly realized he’d still had pretty definite ideas about gender roles. . . and all those ideas came crashing down around him every time he thought about Ben.

\--

To be continued


	9. Chapter 9

Poe decided to talk to his mom that night before he went to Finn’s house, just to get it over with.  She was watching TV in the living room after dinner, and Poe was glad to see that B.B. was in his room instead of watching with her.  As accepting as his little brother had been of Poe kissing Ben, Poe didn’t want him around for what might become a serious conversation.

“Uh, Mom?” Poe gulped from the doorway, behind the couch where she was sitting.  “Can I talk to you for a second?”

“Sure, honey.” Elizabeth Dameron—“Lizzie” to almost everyone except her two sons—muted the TV and looked over the back of the sofa at Poe.  Her brown hair, not quite as dark as Poe’s and with the coppery sheen B.B. had inherited, was pinned up to the back of her head with a claw hair clip, as it usually was once she got home from work.  She looked so relaxed and comfortable, Poe hated to bother her.  “I thought you were going to Finn’s,” she commented.

“I am, in a little bit.”  Poe trudged over to the couch and sat on the opposite end.  His mother looked him over and pursed her lips.

“Okay, Ace, what’s wrong?”

Poe cringed inwardly at the childhood nickname, which he’d earned by being obsessed with airplanes as a kid and vowing he was going to grow up to be a fighter pilot.  He _still_ wanted to be a pilot, but he would probably die of shame first if his mom ever called him Ace in front of Ben.

“Nothing’s wrong.  I just need to tell you something,” he muttered.  His mother’s eyes, very much like his own, were fixed on his face as he swallowed hard.  “Er, you know the prom’s coming up in a few weeks, right?  I. . . I got a date.”

Lizzie smiled, and Poe couldn’t help but notice the relieved, “Is _that_ all?” expression on her pale face.

“Well, congratulations.  It’s not Rey, is it?  Because no matter how much Finn claims they’re just friends, I think he would be a bit jealous of you.”

“No, Mom, it’s not Rey,” Poe chuckled, in spite of his nerves.  “She and Finn are going together.  It’s. . . .”  Finally, he just blurted it out: “I’m going with a boy.”

“Oh!”  Her reaction wasn’t as bad as it could have been, but she certainly looked surprised.  She stared at her son a moment then murmured, “Who?  Do I know him?”

“Nah, not really.  It’s the principal’s son.  Ky—Ben.  The one I went to that Valentine’s dance with.”  Poe tried to say it casually; the fact that his heartbeat sped up a bit just talking about Ben didn’t make things any easier.

“Oh, I thought that was just you bucking the system so you two could get in.”  She arched a dark eyebrow with the faint beginnings of what was almost a smirk.  “At least that’s what _you_ told me.”

“Well yeah, it was, but. . . um. . . .”  Poe took a deep breath and said in a rush, “But I’ve had a crush on him for, like, ever, and he—he kissed me after the dance, and then last night he asked me to the prom.  We’ve been working on painting the scenery together, and he’s really a lot nicer than most people think he is, and Principal Organa _really_ likes me, and Ben said she didn’t have a problem with us going together.”

As Lizzie let her son talk himself out, her amused expression faded into a thoughtful one.  Poe eventually fell silent, realizing that just like always, his nerves were making him talk too much.  His hands were shaking despite how calm his mother now looked.

“Poe, honey,” she finally sighed, “you were scared to tell me, weren’t you?  You thought I would be mad?”

“Yeah, or. . . or that you might start—crying or something,” Poe mumbled.  That would have been a thousand times worse than “mad.”

“No, I’m not—”  She broke off, appearing to choose her words carefully, and began again.  “This is a very different situation.  _Very_ different.”  Lizzie leaned over and stroked her son’s hair, another somewhat embarrassing gesture left over from his childhood.  At the moment, though, Poe didn’t really mind it.  “Baby, what your father did hurt me very badly.  You know that.  But what hurt wasn’t that he did it with another man.  I would have felt exactly the same way if he had cheated on me with a woman.  What hurt was that he _deceived_ me, instead of behaving like an adult and—and asking for a divorce or something.”

Poe felt a little bit like crying himself, but he masked it with a scowl.  “You had a right to be hurt, Mom.  He was a—a _jerk_.”  The word wasn’t nearly strong enough, especially considering that Poe had often called Ben the very same thing, but he couldn’t bring himself to swear in front of his mother.

Lizzie nearly echoed his thoughts.  “He was a lot worse than that, because of how he abandoned you and B.B.  I wasn’t angry about him leaving _me_.  I was angry that he left you guys.”

“We’re better off without him,” Poe declared.  His mother smiled faintly and gave him one last pat on the head; then she sat back and looked into his face.  Poe knew she had something else on her mind, and he waited with some apprehension.

“Poe, does this mean that you. . . that you’re gay?  Or is this just a man-crush, or whatever they call it these days?”  Despite the playfulness of her words, Poe could see the concern in her eyes, and he wished she hadn’t asked him a question he didn’t know the answer to himself.

“I. . . I don’t know, Mom!” he nearly groaned in frustration.  “I still think some girls are cute too.  And it’s not like I’ve been going around asking myself if I’m gay, trying to figure it out.”  This declaration was, in fact, something of a lie, but it was the only thing he could think of to say.  But then he qualified in a murmur, “But. . . but I do really like Ben.  It’s not just a—a man-crush.”  He winced a little having to say the words “man-crush” to his mom.

“Is he your boyfriend?”

“No.”  Poe hesitated before admitting, “But I wish he was.  I _really_ like him.”  He had looked away from Lizzie as he spoke, but now he turned back to her and mumbled, “What if we _did_ start going together?  Would you be mad then?”

“Of course not.”  Poe’s mother leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him.  “Poe, if you’re gay, or bisexual, or anything else, I’m not going to be mad, and I’m not going to love you any less.”  She drew back a little to rest her hands on his shoulders and look down at him.  “I just know that it might be hard on you, and I want you to be happy—without getting hurt or having to worry about who you love.”

“Mom, I’m not in _love_ with him,” Poe sighed; now that he knew his mother was okay with him dating Ben, he was starting to get embarrassed about the whole thing.  “You’re the one who’s worrying too much.  It’s just the prom.”

“Okay, okay.  It’s just the prom.”  Lizzie let him go and turned back toward the TV.  Poe still wasn’t completely comfortable with how pensive she looked, but he decided there wasn’t much he could do about it.  “And if you’re asking if you can go to the prom with Ben, yes, you can.  Just make sure you behave yourself—I’ve heard about how much trouble he gets into.”

“He’s doing better,” Poe reassured her.  “He’s started doing his homework, and I told him he can’t get in trouble anymore because I’ll be mad if he gets grounded again and can’t go with me.”

“Oh?  And it’s working?”

“Yeah!  He’s getting ungrounded next week so we can go to the movies Friday night,” Poe grinned.

“Then it’s no wonder his mother likes you,” Lizzie observed.  “And Ben must really like you too.”  She smiled when Poe blushed.

“I-I guess.”

“And now, if you’re still going over to Finn’s, you’d better get moving.  Otherwise, you won’t get many movies watched before your curfew,” announced his mother.

“Real subtle, Mom,” Poe said sarcastically as he got up.  “Have I _ever_ missed my curfew?”

“Not yet,” she replied pointedly.

Poe was glad to escape after the awkward conversation they’d had.  He hurried out to his car and started off for Finn’s house, but before he even made it halfway there, he realized who he _really_ wanted to see was Ben.

_Too bad he’s still grounded,_ Poe thought.  _I guess I could call him when I get to Finn’s—but I don’t really want Finn hearing me talk to him, either._   Finally, he turned his car into a strip mall parking lot and pulled out his phone.

\--

Ben was sprawled on his bed, listlessly browsing the Internet, when his phone rang.  He jumped and gave it a suspicious look; since his friends preferred texting, no one _ever_ called him, unless it was his mother checking up on him.  Considering he was safely at home, he didn’t know who could be calling. . . unless. . . .

_He said he would,_ Ben thought.  _I just didn’t think he meant it. . . ._   But when he scooped up the phone, lying beside his leg on the unmade bed, he saw Poe’s name on the display.

“Hello?” Ben answered it.

“Hey.”  Poe’s voice made Ben’s heart pound, even though the other boy sounded a little nervous.  “It’s—it’s me.  Poe.”

“Yeah.  Hey.”  Ben shoved his laptop off his thighs and turned onto his side, resting the phone against his ear.  “I thought you were hanging out with Finn tonight.”

“I am, but I said I’d call you, too.  Or did you already forget?” Poe chuckled.

“No,” Ben retorted.  “Of course not.  I just thought. . . well, you might call later.”

“Or not at all, right?”  He could almost hear the smile in Poe’s voice.  “You thought I wasn’t gonna call you, didn’t you?  Ben, you should know better than to think I’d stand you up.”

“I didn’t think that!” protested Ben.  “I mean. . . not that you’d do it on purpose.  Just that you’d. . . forget.”

“I’m not gonna forget about you, either.”  Ben smiled himself at how affectionate Poe sounded.  “You’re—you’re not busy, are you?”

“Nah, I was just messing around on the computer,” Ben muttered.  “Bored to death.  I _hate_ being grounded.  Are you still at home?”

“No, I was on my way to Finn’s, but I pulled over to call you.  I. . . I really want to see you, but I guess I’ll have to wait until Monday.”

Ben raked a hand through his long hair, still smiling.  “I could sneak out to see you later.  You’d have to wait until my parents go to bed, but—”

“No!” Poe interrupted, sounding horrified.  “Don’t even _think_ about it!  If you got caught, they’d ground you all over again!”

“I wouldn’t get caught,” Ben informed him loftily.  “It’s not like I haven’t done it before.”

“Maybe you’ve done it before, but you’re not doing it tonight!  I wanted to talk to you, but we can do it on the phone.”  Poe hesitated, then said, “I told Mom about us going to the prom together.”

“Oh.  What’d she say?” murmured Ben.

“She said okay.  I think she was surprised, but she’s okay with it.”

Ben looked down at his crumpled sheets, thinking.  “Um, Poe, did you. . . did you think she wouldn’t let you go with me?”

Poe was quiet a moment before he answered.  “It’s not that.  I knew she’d _let_ me.  But I was afraid she’d be upset.”

“Why?”  Ben scowled.  “Because I’m a guy?  Or because it’s _me?_ ”

“Not because of _you_ , Ben,” Poe promised.  “Because you’re a guy.  I mean, not that she has anything against gay people in general, it’s just that. . . she. . . .”  He stopped completely before stammering, “Um, Ben, if I tell you something, you won’t tell anybody, will you?”

Ben had felt his whole body tense up in anger when he thought about Poe’s mother getting upset over him dating her son.  However, he relaxed at Poe’s reassurance.  Even if Poe’s mom _was_ a bigot, that was better than her having a problem with Ben specifically.

“Of course I won’t tell, Poe.  What is it?”

“I’ve never told anyone about it except for Rey and Finn,” Poe said in a low voice, almost a whisper, “but. . . um, my parents are divorced, right?”

“Uh yeah.  I’d heard that.  I kinda forgot though.”

“Well, it happened because—because my father cheated on Mom.  With a man.”  Ben tried to think of something to say in response, but Poe kept rambling without giving him a chance.  “After he left Mom, he ran off with the guy.  He never sees me and B.B., and I mean, she says he pays child support and stuff, and I don’t even _want_ to see him, but that’s why I was afraid she might be upset about me going out with a boy.  Like she might think that I’m going to end up being like him if I’m. . . if I. . . like guys too.”

When Poe finally fell silent, Ben felt a lot better about Poe’s mom, but he still didn’t know what to say.  He hated to hear the pain in Poe’s voice, though, and he said the first thing that popped into his head, trying to make the other boy feel better.

“Poe, there’s no way she could think that, no matter what.  You’re the nicest person I know.  You wouldn’t hurt _anybody_.”

“Ben. . . .”  Ben thought he’d said the wrong thing and upset Poe, until the other boy mumbled, “That’s. . . that’s so sweet.  And like I said, she wasn’t mad, just really surprised.”  To Ben’s relief, he laughed a little.  “She asked if I had a man-crush on you.”

“Oh God,” Ben groaned.  “She sounds almost as bad as _my_ parents.”  He paused, then teased, “Well?  _Do_ you have a man-crush on me?”

“I told her no.  I told her I really like you, instead.”

Ben felt his face grow warm, and he muttered, “I. . . I really like you too.  Poe—are you _sure_ I can’t see you tonight?”  All he could think about was how nice it would be to hold Poe in his arms just then and to kiss his pretty mouth.  He wanted to make Poe happy, to make him feel wanted.

“Ben, I’d really like to see you, but not if it could get you in trouble.”  Ben could just imagine those expressive dark eyes glaring at him sternly.  “You’re going to behave yourself so we can go out next weekend.”

“ _Fine_ ,” Ben sighed dramatically.  “Bossy little rooster.”  Poe’s answering laugh through the phone made him smile again.

“You know, I’m starting to like it when you call me that.  Can I call you. . . um. . . my tall, grumpy stork?”

“Y-yeah.  You can call me that,” Ben breathed, thinking that Poe could call him _anything_ that started with “my.”

Poe chuckled, then sighed.  “I guess I’d better go before Finn starts wondering where I am.  Can I text you later, though?  My curfew’s at midnight, but I usually stay up awhile after that.”

“Yeah, you can text me.  I’ll be up.”  Ben fidgeted, flicking the thumb of his free hand against his painted fingernail, then muttered, “Poe, thanks for telling me.  About your dad and all.  It means a lot that you trust me.”

“You’re welcome, but. . . but thank you too.  For listening to me.”  They were both quiet a moment; then Poe murmured, “I’ll text you later, okay?”

“Yeah, okay.”  Ben smiled.  “Bye, little rooster.”

“Bye. . . stork.”

After they hung up, Ben rolled onto his back and lay there looking up at the ceiling, phone resting on his chest.  He was _still_ smiling.

Despite telling Poe he’d be awake, Ben dozed off before midnight.  He’d spent the evening killing time and avoiding his parents, and around eleven, he turned his light out and fell asleep with his phone on the pillow beside him so it would wake him up when. . . _if_ Poe texted him.  Not used to getting his hopes up about much of anything, Ben had trouble believing things with Poe were still going so well.  But Poe hadn’t broken a promise to him yet, and Ben managed not to be too surprised when his phone dinged shortly after midnight.

“Hey stork,” the message read.  Ben rolled his eyes and grinned at the same time.

“How was the movie,” he texted back.

“Sucked.  Dumb horror movie.  Finn likes them.  What r u doing?”

Ben decided not to admit that he’d been asleep that early.  “Nothing.  U?”

“In bed,” Poe replied.  Ben tried to imagine what Poe’s bedroom might look like, then what Poe might look like.  Cute, he’d bet.  Then he had an idea, and he sent another message quickly before he lost the nerve.

“Send me a pic.”

A second later, he got the reply: “Of what.”

 “You.”  Poe took so long to respond, Ben started to worry that maybe he’d thought the request was weird.  Maybe it _was_ weird to ask for a selfie of Poe in bed.  Maybe Poe thought he was being creepy, even though it wasn’t like Ben wanted a picture of anything _dirty_ like—

His thoughts were cut short by Poe texting back, “Why?  I look awful.”

“Bet you don’t,” Ben muttered aloud, but he only texted, “U owe me for not letting me see u.”

This time, Poe answered quicker.  “Fine.  Just a sec.”  Ben waited, shifting his phone from hand to hand as he cracked his knuckles and felt his heart pounding.  He didn’t have any pictures of Poe at all, except for whatever was in the yearbooks Leia insisted on purchasing every year.  This way, he’d have one all to himself, taken just for him.

He jumped when his phone dinged again.  The screen had gone dark while he waited, and Ben took a shaky breath before he mashed the button to turn it back on.

The photo Poe sent did not look awful—far from it, in fact.  His bedroom was dark, lit only by the phone’s flash, and Ben couldn’t see much of it beyond Poe himself and the pillow he had propped up behind his back.  But then, Ben had completely ceased to care what Poe’s _room_ looked like.  Instead, he gazed at Poe, who was looking up at his phone held at that weird selfie angle everybody used.  Poe was smiling, a little shyly but enough to show his teeth between those gorgeous lips Ben couldn’t get enough of.  His black, wavy hair was perfectly tousled, and his eyes reflected the flash under his partially-lowered lids and lashes.

In Ben’s opinion, he looked utterly beautiful. . . and he wasn’t wearing a shirt.

“Shit,” Ben whispered when he noticed.  He hadn’t taken gym since eighth grade, so he hadn’t seen Poe shirtless since they were kids.  Poe wasn’t super muscular or anything, but his tan chest was well-defined from what Ben could see despite the darkness and slight blurriness of the photo.  Even his bare shoulders looked sexy, somehow.  Poe had a sheet pulled up to his waist, just visible at the bottom of the photo, and Ben’s imagination immediately started pondering what he was (or, maybe, wasn’t) wearing.

_Stop it,_ he scolded himself, even as the thought made him squirm.  Ben felt guilty every time he thought something even remotely sexual about Poe.  Poe was just so. . . so nice, so well-behaved, so _innocent_.  He’d probably freak out if he knew Ben was sitting there imagining what he looked like naked, just like he’d freak out if he knew some of the things Ben had imagined them doing together, when he didn’t feel quite guilty enough to stop himself.

Another ding from his phone jolted Ben back to reality, and he realized he’d been gazing at Poe’s picture for several minutes without replying.  “U there?” Poe had texted.

“Yeah,” Ben wrote, then paused, wondering what else to say.  He didn’t want Poe to think he didn’t like the picture or something, but he also didn’t want to say anything that would make him feel creepier than he already did.  Finally, he added, “U look really cute.  Not bad at all.”  There.  Encouraging, but not creepy, right?

His stomach knotted when he read Poe’s next message: “Now u.”

“Now me what?” Ben texted back, although he knew perfectly well what Poe meant.

A second later, Poe confirmed it: “Send me a pic.”

“No, no, _no,_ ” Ben hissed, thumbs twitching over his phone.  He hated having his picture taken anyway, and he certainly didn’t want to take one _now_ , especially one that Poe would see.  _I really **do** look awful,_ Ben thought. . . and he didn’t wear a shirt to sleep either.

He texted back a terse, “no,” even though he knew Poe wasn’t going to accept that as an answer.  Sure enough, the other boy replied immediately.

“Do it. I sent u one. Not fair.”  Ben stared down at his phone and tried to think of what to do.  Keep saying no?  Say goodnight and just turn off the phone?  That seemed like the best solution, until Poe sent another text before Ben could do anything: “If u don’t I’ll be mad at u.”

“Jesus,” Ben groaned.  Not only was Poe bossy; apparently, he also had figured out exactly how to manipulate Ben into following his orders.  Ben gave in and texted, “Just a minute then,” to buy himself time to think.

So he had to take the picture; that much was obvious.  But should he put on a shirt first?  Pull his own sheet up higher?  Do something to his hair?  Or just say to hell with it, like he did with everything else in his life, and get it over with?

He chose the latter.  Ben held his phone out and scowled at it, then remembered what Poe had said about liking his smile.  Ben _hated_ his dorky smile, but if it would make Poe happy. . . .  He raked his hand through his shaggy hair one last time, smiled at the phone, and took the picture.  He managed to send it to Poe without really looking at it himself, then collapsed back on his pillow with a groan.

To Ben, it felt like a year passed before he got Poe’s reply.  When the phone dinged, he cringed before making himself read the message.

“Ur really hot.  Wish I was there.”

Ben just stared at his phone, wondering if Poe could possibly be telling the truth.  He barely managed to text back, “Me too.”  Deciding that wasn’t good enough, he immediately sent another message: “Ur really hot too.  I want to kiss u.”

He started smiling again, this time without having to force it, when Poe replied, “Me toooooo.  Ur bed’s big enough for me right?”

_Oh God,_ Ben thought.  Maybe Poe wasn’t as innocent as he thought.

“Yeah,” he texted back.  “Ur little and Id hold u close.”

“Good.  I like being close 2 u.”  A few seconds after that, Poe sent another message: “Im really sleepy.  Wish I could sleep with u holding me.”  Ben sighed, imagining what it would be like to spend all night with Poe, even if they _were_ just sleeping.

“Me 2,” he replied.  As much as he didn’t want to say good night, he also didn’t want to keep Poe awake, so he added, “Go 2 bed rooster.”

“Will u call me tomorrow?”

Ben smiled again.  “Yeah.”

“K.  Good night stork.”  Poe had added a kiss emoji at the end of the text, which made Ben roll his eyes a second time even as his smile grew a little.  It was a pretty girly thing to do. . . but also really, really cute.

“Night.”  Ben hesitated then added the emoji to his message too before he sent it.  He waited a few minutes, just in case Poe replied again, but Ben’s phone remained silent.  Finally, he shoved the phone onto his nightstand and settled down into bed—but not before looking at Poe’s picture one last time.

\--

To be continued


	10. Chapter 10

On Monday, Phasma ate lunch at the losers’ table.

She didn’t _have_ to, but since three of the five kids in that little coterie were on her committee, and since none of the three had shown up to any of the previous committee meetings, it was the most practical way to nail down the time and location of the pre-prom dinner.  And anyway, Hux sat at the table where Phasma’s usual clique ate, and she was tired of having to ignore him every lunch period.

One of the guys, Arthur, and the only girl in the group—Gamora, the pugilistic adopted sister of Phasma’s friend Nebula—were absent that day.  That left Phasma with her committee to herself.  Two of the three boys—Richard, who preferred the nickname Rocket, and Peter—were bickering about something over their sandwiches, while the third was sitting quietly with his usual vacant smile on his face.  Like Rocket and Phasma herself, he went by a nickname, but the difference was that she didn’t know his real name; he had always just been “Groot.”  Phasma doubted any of the three had taken anything seriously a day in their lives.

She sighed and glared at Rocket and Peter.  “Can you two quit fighting long enough for us to get some work done?”

“What do we have to do, anyway?” Rocket complained.

“We need to figure out where we’re having the dinner—we really should have already made the reservations by now,” Phasma fretted.

“Who cares where we eat?  No one goes to prom for the _food_ ,” griped Rocket.  “Right?”  Groot shrugged and nodded, but Peter at least took Phasma’s side.

“ _I_ care!” the auburn-haired boy declared.  “I happen to have good taste, unlike _you_.  You probably eat out of the trash!”

“Do not,” muttered Rocket.

“And anyway,” Peter went on, “dinner at a nice restaurant is an essential part of a romantic date.”

“What would _you_ know about being romantic?” Rocket shot back.  “I heard the last girl you hooked up with slapped you ‘cos you couldn’t remember her name afterwards!”  Phasma was surprised that a dork like Peter had managed to “hook up” with any girl at all, but they had more important things to discuss.

“None of that matters,” she interrupted with another glare at them both.  “Just help me pick a place.  And Rocket, McDonald’s doesn’t count—it has to be _nice_ , like Peter said.”

“See, half-pint,” Peter taunted the other boy (who was, after all, shorter than anyone else in their class, including the girls).  He turned back to Phasma and suggested, “How about the country club?  It’s nice, got the right atmosphere.”

Rocket rolled his brown eyes.  “Yeah, if you’re a stuck-up trust fund baby.  I vote for pizza.”

Phasma groaned, “We are not having _pizza_ for our prom dinner.  Actually. . . .”  She cast Peter a surprised and reluctantly respectful look.  “The country club is probably the best choice.  Everything else around here is a chain, and those might not want to work with us on the menu.”

Peter looked rather pleased with himself.  “What _is_ gonna be on the menu anyway?” he asked.

“I don’t know, we’ll worry about that later,” said Phasma, trying to stay focused on one thing at a time.  “Depends on what they can do.  At least our theme would work with just about any kind of cuisine.”

“Fine, whatever,” Rocket scowled, still sulking over losing out on his choice of venue.  “Look, are we done here?”

“What’s your hurry?  Lunch isn’t over for ten minutes, and we have to help Phasma,” Peter informed him.  He was being unusually well-behaved, which made Phasma suspicious.  Peter, like the other two, had shown absolutely no interest in preparing for the prom. . . until now.

Rocket seemed to have noticed Peter’s odd behavior as well.  “Since when did you try to help anybody but yourself?” he snapped.  “And anyway, I wanna go get a candy bar before lunch ends.  I’m still hungry.”

Groot leaned over and murmured something inaudible in Rocket’s ear, which made the shorter boy glare at him and retort, “I am _not_ gonna get fat, ya moron.  Just ‘cos I had cookies for breakfast doesn’t mean I’m _unhealthy_.”  Groot didn’t react to being called “moron”; he only shrugged and looked down at his friend with a slightly more concerned expression than his usual vacant look.

Phasma wasn’t quite sure how the two had gotten to be best friends, or why Groot put up with the way Rocket treated him sometimes, frequently complaining about how stupid Groot was (not without just cause, but still).  Groot paid the abuse no attention whatsoever; in fact, he never got angry at _all_ unless someone threatened Rocket.  Phasma could vividly recall when, a year before, Rocket had said something or other that pissed Kylo off, and the two boys got in a fist fight in the school parking lot.  Rocket was quick and a good fighter, but Kylo outmatched him in sheer strength. . . until Groot got involved.  As thin and scrawny as Groot was, he was even taller than Kylo, and he didn’t stop pounding Kylo until the latter finally swore never so much as to look sideways at Rocket again.  All three had gotten two weeks’ detention for the incident—two weeks during which Kylo never stopped sulking and Rocket never stopped gloating, but Groot just kept right on smiling and never said a word.

“One more thing, Rocket,” Phasma told him before he bolted.  “What time do we want to have dinner start?  The prom begins at seven, so would five-thirty give us enough time?”

“Sure, whatever, can I go now?” Rocket muttered.  Phasma bit back a sigh and looked at Groot, who only shrugged again.

When she turned to Peter, he said encouragingly, “Sounds fine to me.”

“Okay, fine.  Five-thirty.  I’ll call the country club after school and see what choices we’ll have for the menu.”  Phasma grumbled at Rocket, “And now you can go.  Sorry for wasting your precious time.”

“Hmph.”  Rocket clambered to his feet and slung his backpack over his shoulder.  Groot got up to follow him, but before they left, Rocket grinned suddenly and turned back to Phasma.  “Almost forgot, I did wanna ask you something.  What happened with you and Hux?  I thought you two’d _never_ break up.”

Seething, Phasma snapped, “We didn’t _break up_ because he was never my boyfriend in the first place!  I just decided I didn’t want to go to the prom with him.”  She scowled down at her lunch a minute then, when Rocket showed no signs of losing interest and wandering off, tried to change the subject.  “Who are _you_ going with, Peter?  I thought you’d be taking Gamora, but you two aren’t on the list together.”

“Yeah, uh. . . she’s going with Drax,” Peter replied.

“Drax?”

“Oh, uh, Arthur.  It’s his nickname,” Peter explained.  “Anyway, his girlfriend just moved away.  He’s been really bummed about it, and Gamora felt bad for him, so—”

“So _actually_ ,” Rocket interrupted, rolling his eyes a second time, “Peter pissed Gamora off again, so she won’t go to the prom with him.  _That’s_ why she’s going with Drax.”

“It is _not_ ,” Pete retorted.  “She totally _would_ have gone with me .  And anyway, it’s not like _you_ could get a girl to go with you.”  Rocket scowled at him, and Phasma raised an eyebrow.  As much as she claimed to disdain drama, she enjoyed gossip as much as the next teenager, and anyway, Rocket deserved it.

“Who _are_ you going with, Rocket?” she asked.

Rocket fidgeted and muttered, “Me and Groot are going together.  As _friends_ ,” he added with a sharp glare in Peter’s direction.  “No homo.”  Groot just smiled.

Peter leaned over and stage-whispered, “He couldn’t get a date.”

“I could have if I _wanted_ to,” Rocket snarled at him; then he turned and headed for the vending machines, muttering, “C’mon, Groot,” over his shoulder.  The other boy—more than a full head taller than Rocket—followed obediently.

“Sorry he was hassling you,” Peter said with a magnanimous tone when he and Phasma were left sitting by themselves.  “He can be pretty immature.”

“Yeah, well, I’ve heard that about other boys too,” Phasma retorted.  However, Peter _had_ been sort of cooperative, so she decided she should be nice.  “But thanks for suggesting the country club.  It should work out pretty well.”

“No problem.  You want me to call them?” Peter asked her.  “You’ve been doing a lot of the work lately.”

Now Phasma was _really_ suspicious.  Peter was actually _offering_ to do something useful?  “No, I can do it,” she murmured as she gave him a sideways glance.  “It won’t take long.”

“Oh, okay.”  Peter took a long drink of soda out of the can he had, then cleared his throat.  “Uh, Phasma. . . so if you aren’t going to the prom with Hux, you don’t have a date, right?”

Phasma nearly choked on her own drink.  Of all the things Peter could have been plotting, this one certainly hadn’t entered her mind.  He _wasn’t_ going to ask her out. . . was he?  No one _ever_ asked her out.  Except for Hux, in which case it was always more like assuming than asking.

“I don’t have a date,” she answered carefully, just to see what he would do.

“Well, since you don’t have a date, and since I don’t either—because Gamora wants to help Drax out, _not_ because I made her mad, Rocket doesn’t know what he’s talking about—uh, would you want to go with me?”

_Holy shit,_ Phasma thought, _he **is** asking me out._   Her first instinct was to say no, as quickly as possible.  Peter was, after all, a permanent member of the class’s unpopular clique.  He was a dork who got into fights, who bragged about dating girls who probably would never even give him the time of day, whose musical tastes were about forty years behind the times, and who wasn’t above stealing things every now and then.  He was _so_ not Phasma’s type.

_Yeah, and what **is** my type?_ she suddenly wondered.  _Hux?  In that case, maybe something different wouldn’t be a bad idea._ Besides. . . as she stared at Peter now, trying to think of what to say, she noticed for the first time that he was kind of cute.  Just kind of, and not that she cared about stuff like that, but he had beautiful green eyes, and his smile was nice, and. . . .

_And it’s just the prom, not like he would be my boyfriend or anything.  I need a date, he needs a date. . . and I’d have someone else’s name up on the poster before Hux did._

“Okay,” Phasma said.  “We can go to the prom together.”

Peter opened his mouth, blinked, then stared right back at her.  Obviously, he had been expecting a different answer.  “Wait, we. . . can?”

She shrugged.  “Sure.  We don’t know each other very well, but it’s just the prom.  Why not?”

“Hunh.  Okay.  Yeah!  Why not?”  Peter grinned.  “It’ll be fun!  I’m an _awesome_ dancer.”

“Hm.”  Phasma sighed and hoped she wasn’t making a mistake.  “I’m sure you are.”

\--

Ben ate lunch with Poe, Finn, and Rey again, and while he mostly stayed quiet, he seemed pretty content.  He and Poe had talked on the phone every day that weekend, but that couldn’t compare to sitting next to each other, holding hands when they thought Rey and Finn weren’t paying attention.  Poe kept sneaking glances at the other boy and thinking about the photo of Ben he now had on his phone. . . and daydreaming about getting to be alone with Ben that day after school while they painted.

When the bell rang to end lunch, Ben held Poe back a minute and asked, “Hey, do you think you can come to the library today during study hall?”

Poe shrugged.  “Probably, if I say I need a book or something.  Why?”

“I’m stuck in there every day,” Ben muttered.  “I wanted some company.”

“Well, yeah, I can come then.”  Poe raised an eyebrow at him.  “But why do you have to go to the library every day?”

Ben sighed, “Mom’s making me work in there as a way of paying back the money I’ve cost the school.”

Poe tried not to snicker, but it was difficult.  “Wh-what?  Wait, for that test tube you broke in Mr. Ackbar’s class?  It didn’t cost _that_ much, did it?”

“Noooo,” Ben hedged.  “But. . . there was some other stuff too.”

“ _What_ other stuff?” Poe asked.  It didn’t seem quite so funny anymore, and he wondered just how much damage Ben had done.

“Um. . . I dunno.  Just stuff.”

Poe rolled his eyes and groaned, “Come _on_ , I’m not your parents.  That’s not gonna work on me.  What did you break?”

Ben sighed again and grumbled, “A computer, okay?”

“A—you broke a _computer_?”  Poe stared at him.  “When?  _How?_ ”

“At the beginning of the year.  It crashed halfway through class, and I lost the whole project I’d been working on.  It pissed me off and—well, I hit it.”

“You hit a computer,” Poe restated.  “Geez, Ben, how did you think _that_ was gonna help?”

“I didn’t!” snapped Ben.  “I was just mad, and it felt good to. . . to _hit_ something.”

“Oh really, it felt _good_ to make things a thousand times worse?” Poe retorted.  “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard!”

Ben was glaring at him now.  “Look, it happened _months_ ago!  Why’re you making such a big deal about it?”

“’Cos you’re still breaking stuff!  I mean, smashing a test tube isn’t like smashing a _computer_ , but still—you’ve got to quit pitching a fit every time you get mad!”  What Poe wasn’t saying was how uncomfortable the thought of Ben’s anger made him feel.  He didn’t want to admit that he was scared of anything, especially not to Ben. . . but yeah, he was scared of _that_.  It brought back memories of his parents’ fights before the divorce, memories of his father yelling and breaking things with that exact same useless rage.

Poe was jerked back to the present when Ben spoke again—not angrily but in a mumble.

“That was before—”  Ben stopped and just looked down at Poe and bit his lip before muttering, “Never mind.”  As Poe stared back up at him, he realized that Ben looked upset, not angry.  In fact, he looked almost like he was about to cry.

Poe’s own anger melted away instantly.  “Ben, what—” he began, but the taller boy cut him off by turning and walking away.

“I gotta go or I’ll be late for class,” was all he said over his shoulder as he left Poe standing there in the courtyard.

Poe felt terrible all afternoon.  _I hurt his feelings,_ he thought as he sat through class without even trying to pay attention.  _He’s trying to do better, and I was just making him feel bad because of something he doesn’t even know about._   What had Ben started to say?  “That was before. . . .”  Before what?

_Before we made up and started being. . . well, whatever we are,_ Poe realized.  _He hasn’t gotten in trouble at all since then, and I’m still giving him a hard time about it._

As soon as he got to study hall, Poe asked the teacher in charge if he could spend the thirty-minute class period in the library, using the excuse that he needed to do research for a history paper.  As Poe had suspected, he had no trouble getting permission, and he hurried over to the library, hoping Ben would still want to see him.

When Poe edged open one of the double doors and peeked in, he saw Ben shelving books as slow as humanly possible.  Poe grinned in spite of how he’d been feeling, and he went on into the library, letting the door thump closed behind him.  Ben jumped at the sound and turned to look.

“Poe!”  The happy expression on Ben’s face told Poe he’d made the right choice.  “I. . . thought you weren’t coming.”

“Yeah, I, um. . . .”  Poe set down his backpack and gave Ben a slightly sheepish smile.  “I wanted to say I’m sorry.  I know you’re trying, and I shouldn’t have gotten mad at you.”

Ben had come closer as Poe was talking, and he stunned the smaller boy by pulling Poe into a hug.

“I shouldn’t have gotten mad at you either.  Sorry, baby.”  He planted a kiss on Poe’s forehead, but Poe barely felt it; he was too busy blushing hard and feeling almost uncomfortably happy at being called “baby” for the first time by anyone other than his mother.

“Um—” he began, tilting his head back to look up at Ben, but Ben cut him off with another kiss right on his mouth.  Poe’s muffled exclamation turned into a near moan when Ben pushed his tongue in, and despite all of Poe’s better judgment, they kissed for a full thirty seconds before he finally made himself pull back.

“Ben!  We—we shouldn’t do this in the _library_ —”

Ben just laughed.  “Why the hell did you think I wanted you to come in here, dork?”

“What?”  Poe stared at him.  “You. . . I thought you just wanted to talk so you wouldn’t be bored!  You were trying to get me in here so we could make out?”

“ _Well,_ ” Ben countered, still grinning, “if you don’t _want_ to, you can just go back to study hall, and maybe I’ll kiss you after we paint today.  _Maybe_.”

“Ugh, of course I _want_ to,” protested Poe.  “But if someone catches us, we’ll be in huge trouble!”

“We won’t get caught!”  Ben let him go but grabbed his hand and tugged him toward the back of the library, behind the tall shelves that would hide them from view of the door.  Once they were in the back corner, Ben wrapped his arms around Poe again and tried to kiss him.  Poe struggled—but not as much as he intended to, and when Ben’s lips brushed his jaw, he slumped back against the wall with a whimper.

“Please?” Ben whispered.  He kissed Poe just under his ear, then down his neck.

“O- _kay_ ,” Poe huffed, trying to sound as if he were doing Ben a favor.  “Just for a minute.  And don’t leave any marks on my neck!”

“I won’t!” Ben protested, blushing a little himself as he lifted his mouth back up to Poe’s.  Poe kissed him back with some trepidation, but when the school authorities didn’t immediately burst into the library and drag them both off to detention, he decided maybe it would be okay.  Poe rose up on his toes so he could wrap his arms around Ben’s neck and press closer to him.  He felt Ben shake with suppressed laughter as the larger boy pushed him up against the wall.

“Admit it, you like doing this, don’t you?” Ben taunted him when they stopped for breath.  “How does it feel to be bad for once?”  He leaned his forehead against the wall next to Poe’s head and nipped at his ear.  The sensation of the other boy’s teeth on his skin made Poe squirm, although he wasn’t quite sure why.

“I-I’m only doing it because you wanted to,” retorted Poe, but secretly, he thought that maybe it _was_ a little exciting.  Fooling around in the gym after school was one thing, but to be in the library, during school hours. . . he was definitely drifting into Ben’s territory of flagrant violation of the rules.  What had given Ben the idea to do this, anyway?  . . . And what had given him the idea to suck on Poe’s earlobe, for that matter?

“What are you doing?” Poe complained.  “That’s such a weird place to—nngh. . . .”

Why the hell did that feel so _good_?

“Poe,” Ben mumbled in Poe’s ear when he’d finished putting his mouth all over it, “you looked so hot in that selfie you sent me.  I. . . I couldn’t wait until after school.  I’ve been waiting all _weekend_.”  He drew his head back to look down at the smaller boy, then lifted a hand to touch his fingertips to a curl of Poe’s hair at the side of his head.  Ben looked embarrassed, almost a little scared.  “I’ve. . . never felt like this about anyone else.  I told you I never kissed anybody before, but now it’s kind of all I can think about.”  He smiled slightly, hesitantly.

“Me too,” Poe admitted.  The look of relief on Ben’s face made Poe feel more affection for him than ever, and Poe suddenly no longer cared about getting caught.  He just wanted to make Ben believe that Poe really did want him, that he didn’t have anything to be embarrassed _or_ scared about.

“Your selfie was hot too,” murmured Poe.  He smirked when Ben looked embarrassed all over again.  “ _Really_ hot.”

“Really?” Ben asked doubtfully.

“Yeah.”  Poe dropped one arm from Ben’s neck so he could put a hand on his chest.  “I didn’t know you were so muscular.  Is it from fencing?”

“Y-yeah.  I guess.”  Ben looked down at Poe’s hand, as if he weren’t quite sure what it was or what it was doing pressed against his shirt.  Poe rubbed it over Ben’s chest, feeling his pectoral muscles, and Ben made a low, nervous noise.

“Does that feel good?” Poe asked him with sincere curiosity.  He certainly liked the way Ben’s firm muscles felt under his hand, but he had no idea how Ben felt about it.

“Yeah,” Ben muttered again.  “I. . . I like feeling you touch me, but I want to kiss you again too.”  Poe nodded and reluctantly moved his arm back up to Ben’s neck so the taller boy could lean in and kiss him.  Deciding that he’d have to get Ben’s shirt off him someday when they weren’t hiding out in the library, Poe tried to forget about Ben’s chest and enjoy his kisses instead.  He wasn’t quite able to do the forgetting, but the enjoying part was pretty easy.

Ben pressed him up against the wall again, and Poe loved the way the other boy’s larger body felt against him, how Ben’s hands had dropped to hold Poe’s hips, how forcefully Ben’s tongue was moving in his mouth.  Poe hugged Ben to him a little tighter and rubbed up against him as he tried to be just as forceful with his own tongue.  Ben made a low noise in his throat and dug his fingertips into Poe’s hipbones as they kissed.  That noise sent what felt like an electric pulse down Poe’s spine and out along his nerves—and straight to his groin, he realized a second later.

_Ugh, no, he’s gonna feel it,_ Poe thought, but there was nothing he could do about it.  Not only was he trapped between Ben and the wall, there was also no chance of his arousal going away with Ben kissing him like that—and Poe didn’t want to stop kissing, no matter what.  He tried to push back against the wall to put space between his body and Ben’s, but a second later, the larger boy thrust his pelvis forward to grind against Poe, hard.  Poe gasped into Ben’s mouth at how good it felt.

Ben broke off the kiss a second later, panting for breath, and rested his forehead against the wall again.

“Poe,” he whispered, “are you—am I getting you hard?”

For an instant, Poe thought dying of embarrassment was an actual possibility.  Instead of dying, though, he just blushed all the way down his neck as Ben pressed his thigh in between Poe’s, and Poe realized there was no way he could lie about it.

“Y-yeah,” he stammered, squeezing his eyes shut.

“Shit,” Ben breathed.  Poe cringed until Ben murmured, “Me too.”  He shifted against Poe a little and rubbed against his thigh.  “Feel that?”

“Unh hunh. . . .”  It was about all Poe could manage to say, and it dissolved into a little whimper when Ben pushed against him harder.  Poe felt guilty, like they were doing something wrong (especially since they were in the _library_ of all places), but it felt _so_ good, and it was _so_ hot that he was able to turn Ben on like that, and before Poe could stop himself, he was grinding back against Ben as hard as he could and turning his head to catch the other boy’s mouth again.

In fact, Ben was the one who stopped it a few minutes later, pulling back from Poe and bracing himself on the wall with his hands on either side of Poe’s shoulders.

“Poe, we—we gotta stop,” he panted.

“Why?” Poe nearly whined. 

“The bell’s gonna ring soon.  I can’t—um, I can’t go outside until I. . . calm down,” Ben mumbled.  His eyes dropped downward from Poe’s flushed face, and he grinned suddenly.  “Neither can you.  _Damn_ , Poe.”

Poe had been trying not to look at Ben the same way, but now he gave in and looked.  “Damn yourself,” he muttered.

“So now I’m getting you hard _and_ making you swear?”  Ben finally straightened up, still smiling.  “I guess I really am a bad influence.”

“ _Yeah_ you are.”  Poe pushed off of the wall and stood diffidently about a foot away from Ben.  He wanted to be back in Ben’s arms, but he also was pretty sure that wouldn’t help the situation any.  Ben’s smile softened a little as he looked down at Poe.

“I thought you wouldn’t, um. . . be into it like that,” Ben murmured.  “I felt bad just thinking about doing stuff with you.”

Poe stared at him.  “Really?  Why?”

“I dunno.  You just. . . you’re so _good_.  Made me feel guilty.”

“Geez, Ben, I. . . um, _this_ happened when we made out on Friday,” Poe admitted.  “I was afraid you felt it then.”

“You’re kidding.  I wish I’d known,” Ben groaned before smirking down at Poe again.  “I had the hottest dream about you Friday night after you sent me that picture.”

“Really?” Poe asked again.  He felt himself blush again, but he was also intrigued. . . especially because of what _he’d_ done after getting Ben’s picture.  “What happened?”

Ben just laughed at him.  “Hell no, I’m not telling you _now_ , not until after we paint today—otherwise, I’m not gonna want to do anything but make out with you.

“Then you’re a jerk for even bringing it up,” Poe sulked.  Still, when the bell rang a few seconds later and they had to leave the library, he was kind of glad he’d had a chance to “calm down,” as Ben had put it.

As things turned out, they lost track of time painting, and Ben had to rush home to avoid getting in trouble for being late, without having time to elaborate on the dream he’d had.  Poe was okay with that—an hour and a half of painting had given him enough distance to feel a little embarrassed about what they’d been doing, and he didn’t really want to talk about it.  Nevertheless, when Ben was about to get into his car, Poe wished they could spend more time together.

“Do you still want to go out Friday night?” Ben asked him, a bit shyly.

“Yeah, if you do,” Poe told him.

“I do.”  Ben smiled again, and Poe realized he’d seen the other boy smile a lot more lately than he ever had before.  That made _Poe_ smile, knowing that he could make Ben happy.

“See you tomorrow, rooster,” Ben went on.  He bent his head to kiss Poe quickly.

“Bye, stork,” Poe grinned.  As he went to his own car, he started daydreaming about their date. . . in particular about being alone with Ben someplace that _wasn’t_ school.  _I’ll make him tell me about that dream then,_ Poe thought on his way home, _when we’re where nobody can walk in on us._   Then he started thinking about other things they could do where nobody could walk in on them, and the more he thought about it, the less embarrassed it made him.

\--

To be continued


	11. Chapter 11

After their adventure in the library, Ben and Poe didn’t make out again all week, at least not the way they had on Monday.  Ben wasn’t sure if Poe regretted it or not.  He wasn’t even sure how _he_ felt about it: he’d certainly _liked_ it, but it had made him nervous, too.  Ben had meant what he told Poe, that he had never felt this way before about anyone, and it scared him a little.

They painted a little while after school on Friday but went home early so they could get ready to go out that evening.  When they said goodbye in the school parking lot, Poe stood on his toes to give Ben a kiss.

“I’ll see you tonight,” Poe murmured when he dropped back down flat on his feet; then he added with a grin, “You’re _sure_ you’re ungrounded now?”

“ _Yes_ , I’m sure,” Ben said with mock exasperation.  “As long as I can get home without getting into trouble, I’ll pick you up at five-thirty.”

“Okay.”  Poe squeezed his hand before turning to go to his own car.  Ben watched Poe walk off with that cute little saunter he had, then ducked into his car before Poe could turn around and catch him staring.  He made it home before either of his parents and shut himself in his room to try to figure out what to wear.  It was their first real date, and the more Ben thought about that, the more nervous he got.

Ben took a shower to calm himself down as much as to clean up; he even shaved although he didn’t really need to yet.  He finally put on his favorite jeans and a black button-up shirt just because he was beginning to run out of time.  As he stared at three pairs of shoes and tried to choose which to wear, Ben worried that Poe would think he looked too casual—but then, if he dressed up and Poe didn’t, he’d feel stupid.  What if he was taking all this too seriously?  Ben was treating the whole thing like it was a date, but maybe Poe just thought they were hanging out like he did with Finn and Rey.  Maybe Ben would just embarrass himself and—

“Shut _up,_ ” Ben growled at himself, out loud.  He grabbed the nearest pair of shoes—black combat boots—and pulled them on, then rummaged through a drawer for some jewelry.  He came up with a wide silver herringbone chain necklace and put that on.  His black nail polish still looked okay, although he had planned to paint all of his nails and not just the fourth ones.  No time for that now, though, and anyway, maybe it would look too girly.  Did Poe even like his nail polish at all?  Ben’s eyeliner was in that drawer too.  He’d never had the courage to wear it outside of his room—his parents would probably freak out if they saw him in it—but he liked how it looked.  Maybe Poe would like it too. . . or maybe Poe would think it was way too gay.  Ben sighed and slammed the drawer shut.

He raked a comb through his hair and shoved his wallet in his pocket, then slipped out of his room, hoping to escape the house without running into his parents.  Unfortunately, he had no such luck: Leia was actually waiting for him in the kitchen.

“You look nice,” she commented.  Ben cast her a glower and stalked to the garage door.  To his dismay, Leia went on, “Be home by eleven.”

“ _Eleven?_ ” Ben groaned, turning back to her.  “But my curfew’s always been midnight.”

“That was before you spent the past few months perpetually grounded,” his mother observed.  “If you behave yourself for the rest of the school year and prove we can trust you, then we’ll move it back to midnight.”

“The rest of the school year?!  _Mo-om!_   _Poe’s_ curfew is midnight.”

Leia folded her arms and returned his glare.  “Good for Poe.  Yours is eleven.  Don’t push it.”

“ _Fine_.”  Ben stomped out to his car, cursing his parents in his head but certainly not out loud, not even under his breath.  He knew from experience that “pushing it” would mean he didn’t get to go out at all.

Ben made it to Poe’s house just in time.  He had hoped Poe would come out to his car, but when no one appeared at the door, Ben got out and went to knock.  The door opened after a minute, but Poe wasn’t the one who opened it.  Instead, Ben found himself looking down at Poe’s little brother, B.B., who stared back up at him.  Ben tried not to wince: not only did he dislike children, he especially didn’t want to have to ask the kid to go get his brother for a date with another boy.

But B.B. just kept looking at him, a rather skeptical expression in his dark eyes, and finally Ben mumbled, “Um, is Poe there?”

B.B. didn’t seem particularly eager to turn Poe over to Ben, but he nodded.  “Yeah.  Just a minute.”  The kid turned back into the house and bellowed, “Poe!  Your _boyfriend’s_ here!”  Ben _did_ wince then, and he felt his face grow hot.  B.B. gave him one more critical look then wandered away from the door, leaving it standing open.  Ben wasn’t about to follow him inside, so he eased the door shut and moved to lean against the house, gritting his teeth and trying to relax.  So far nothing about the evening was going the way he wanted it to.

After a moment, he heard the door open again and, steeling himself, he straightened up and turned to see who it was this time.  To his relief, it was Poe, closing and locking the door behind him.

“Hi,” Ben mumbled.  Poe was dressed as casually as he was, although his jeans were tighter and his shirt was tucked in.

“Hey.”  Poe gave Ben a shy smile, then stepped closer to hug him.  Ben wrapped his arms around Poe’s shoulders and held him tight, leaning his cheek against the shorter boy’s dark, wavy hair.  Everything about Poe felt so perfect: the warmth of his little body, the scent and softness of his hair. . . .  All the stress of preparing for the date melted away instantly, and Ben felt happy just holding him, happy in a way he couldn’t remember ever feeling before.

“You—you look really cute,” muttered Ben.

“So do you.”  Poe pulled back to look up at him as he whispered, “I really wanna kiss you, but I don’t want to do it here.  Let’s go.”

“Okay,” Ben agreed.  He didn’t especially want to kiss Poe where his little brother might see, either.  Still, he held Poe’s hand until they got to the car.

“Do you want to get something to eat?” Ben asked Poe as he started his car.  He was too nervous to be very hungry himself, but they had more than an hour to kill before any of the movies playing started.

“Yeah, I’m hungry!” Poe enthused.  “Do you like Panera?  It’s sorta healthy, I guess.”

“That’s fine.  You _would_ worry about eating healthy, you little dork,” Ben teased him.

“Hey, I have to watch my figure!” retorted Poe with a grin.

As he turned on the car stereo, plugged into his phone, Ben muttered, “Like hell you do.  Your figure’s freaking hot, and you know it.”  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Poe flush.

“You. . . really think so?”  Poe looked down at his lap.  “Even though I’m so short?”

“Yeah.”  Ben wanted to say more, maybe something about how good Poe felt rubbing up against him in the library, or how much he wanted to grope Poe’s tight little ass every time he looked at it.  Instead, he kept his mouth shut and turned up the music.  One of his favorite songs had come up on shuffle, and Ben sang along under his breath: _Love is only a feeling, drifting away.  When I’m in your arms, I start believing it’s here to stay, but love is only a feeling anyway. . . ._

“You listen to the most depressing, emo music I’ve ever heard,” Poe commented after the singer had whined for a while.

“I _like_ this song,” Ben muttered.

Poe didn’t say anything else until they got to the restaurant, but as they ate, he started chatting about school and the prom preparations.  As Ben had worried, it was starting to feel like a night out as friends, not as. . . boyfriends, what B.B. had called them.

_I’m **not** his boyfriend,_ Ben thought as he poked at the remains of his sandwich.  _He’s never asked me to be, and **I’ve** never asked **him**.  And the way he acted when I said he was hot. . . I guess it made him uncomfortable._

Poe was still talking, now about what everyone else had been talking about that week: Phasma and Hux.  Most of the gossip about Ben and Poe had died down, but the other two had managed to stay current—mostly because they each had scored prom dates with someone else.

“I get why Hux is going with Nebula,” Poe was saying in between slurps from his soda cup, “although it’s kinda crappy since she’s friends with Phasma.  But why is Phasma going with _Peter_?”

“What’s wrong with Peter?” Ben mumbled, more to seem interested in Poe’s conversation than because he really cared who Phasma was dating.  He had barely spoken to either Phasma or Hux in the past week; he’d been too busy with Poe.

“Nothing’s _wrong_ with him,” Poe admitted.  “I mean, he’s kind of annoying, but he’s okay.  But. . . well, everyone calls him and his friends losers, you know?  Phasma’s pretty popular, so I wouldn’t have thought she’d go out with him, even just to the prom.”

“That’s probably what people said about you and me,” Ben pointed out without thinking.

Poe frowned, then sighed.  “Yeah, I guess you’re right.  I’m being mean.”

“Oh—no, I didn’t mean _that_.”  Ben swallowed hard.  It would be just his luck to offend Poe without even intending to.  “Just that. . . well, you’re popular, and I’m. . . not.”

“Yeah you are—or you would be, if you didn’t scare people off,” Poe said matter-of-factly.  “Your temper’s getting better, but you still glare all the time.  I think a lot of people are afraid of making you mad.”

“I thought you said I only had to smile at _you_ ,” Ben muttered.  He flicked his eyes up to Poe, who grinned at him suddenly.

“Yeah.  I don’t want you to be _too_ popular, or someone might steal you away from me,” Poe declared.  “I kind of like having you all to myself.”

“Me too.”  Ben found himself unable to look away from Poe’s dark eyes, which were watching him with their lids just slightly lowered.  He felt more confused than ever: just when he was certain Poe wasn’t that into him after all, Poe looked at him with those eyes and made Ben feel like they were destined to be together.

“Are you ready to go?” Ben managed to ask after a moment, before he got any more mixed up.  “We’d better get to the theater soon.”

“Yeah, I’m through,” Poe told him.

Ben drove them to the cineplex, where Poe paid for his own ticket, just as he’d paid for his dinner.  That made Ben even more certain that they weren’t boyfriends, whatever B.B. might think about the matter, and he was too shy to insist on paying for them both.  Instead, he silently followed Poe toward the theater showing the movie they’d chosen, some sci-fi/action thing Poe had suggested.  Ben hadn’t cared enough to express a preference; as long as he was with Poe, he’d sit through anything.  Poe grabbed his hand before they made it in, earning a chuckle from some jerk walking behind them with his date—a girl, of course.  Ben resolutely didn’t look at the guy, although he secretly wanted to slug him, but he relaxed when the other couple went into a different theater.

“Where do you like to sit?” Poe asked him.  “Usually I sit in the middle, but there’s fewer people in the back.”

“The back’s fine,” Ben said, thinking that the fewer people around, the better.  They ended up in the center of the very last row, which they had to themselves, with Poe on the left and Ben on the right.  As they waited for the movie to start, Ben began to wish they’d bought something to eat—not that he was any hungrier than he was before dinner, but just to have something to do so he wouldn’t feel so awkward listening to Poe try to make conversation.  Finally the lights dimmed, the previews began, Poe shut up, and Ben tried to forget about how much he wanted to ignore the movie altogether and just kiss the boy beside him instead.

Poe didn’t make forgetting any easier.  Just as the movie started, he pushed up the arm rest between their seats so he could hold Ben’s hand again.  Even that made Ben’s heart beat a little faster, and he threaded his long fingers through Poe’s shorter ones.  Poe rubbed his thumb over Ben’s knuckles, then pressed his hand against the outside of Poe’s leg.  Ben struggled not to smile; Poe wasn’t being especially subtle, but Ben certainly didn’t mind.  Maybe Poe wasn’t so interested in the movie either.

Ben held Poe’s hand a few more minutes to see if Poe would do anything else, but the smaller boy didn’t make any further moves.  Finally, Ben worked up the courage to let Poe’s hand go, after squeezing it, and move his own to the top of Poe’s thigh, a couple inches above his knee.  Poe didn’t react at all.  His hand rested where Ben had left it, between them but not touching Ben’s leg.

_Damn it, what do you want?_ Ben asked him silently.  He’d never been good at reading even the most basic of social cues, and this was entirely new territory altogether.  Eventually, Ben inched his hand up a little farther to stroke the top of Poe’s upper thigh.  It felt warm, even through the denim of Poe’s tight jeans.  Ben kept rubbing his thigh gently, and Poe let him do it; when Ben glanced over at him, he saw a hint of a smile on Poe’s pretty mouth, even though the other boy appeared to be absorbed in the movie.

Ben looked away again and kept rubbing.  After a while, he started wondering just how far Poe would let him go, and he slid his hand upward and inward, fingers curving down to rest along Poe’s inner thigh.  Ben looked at Poe again to judge his reaction, but Poe’s eyes were still glued to the screen.  Just as Ben was about to withdraw his hand, certain Poe was trying to ignore him, he felt Poe’s thigh shift. . . towards him.  Poe had spread his legs wider.

_Oh God,_ Ben thought, and he felt himself flush.  He quickly looked away too, pretending to be intent upon the movie as he tried to decide what to do.  Take his hand away?  Move it up higher?  He tightened his fingers slightly on Poe’s leg, squeezing it just enough to feel the tensed muscles under his hand.  They twitched, just like Poe’s hand trembled sometimes when Ben touched it.  He took the reaction for further encouragement and finally made himself slide his hand up just enough to rest at the juncture where Poe’s right leg met his body.

At first, Ben didn’t feel anything other than the denim-covered dip between leg and pelvis, but then Poe shifted again, almost flicking his hips upward and to the right until Ben could feel something after all.

“Shit,” Ben hissed aloud, before he could stop himself.  It was one thing to feel Poe grinding on his leg while they were in the middle of making out in a deserted library, but quite another to be groping him in a theater with other people around.  It was also something else _entirely_ to be deliberately touching Poe with his hand, yet Ben found himself unable to stop.  He cupped his hand over Poe’s groin and pressed in with his fingertips.  Poe gave a low whimper, so quietly Ben thought maybe he’d just imagined it, until the bulge under his hand began to stiffen.

_Oh God, shit, I shouldn’t be doing this, **we** shouldn’t be doing this,_ Ben thought, eyes still fixed on the movie screen even as he started getting hard too.  And still, he couldn’t stop fondling the other boy, moving his hand back and forth slightly as Poe squirmed in his seat and rubbed back against Ben’s fingers.  Ben had never felt so turned on in his life, or so tortured since he wanted simultaneously to run away and to rip Poe’s clothing off right in the middle of the theater.  He compromised by clenching his hand slightly to squeeze Poe, firmly but not hard enough to hurt.

Ben heard a faint gasp from the other boy; then Poe’s hand abruptly slammed down between Ben’s own legs to grope him.

“A-ah—” Ben half-moaned before he bit down hard on his lip to keep from making any more noise.  Even with his clothes on, even with the rough and inexperienced way Poe was feeling him up, it felt a thousand times better than anything Ben had ever done to himself, just because Poe was the one doing it.  Ben spread his own legs farther to allow Poe to rub his whole hand between them.

Ben couldn’t have described a single scene in the entire movie if his life depended on it.  Even though he stared straight ahead, he didn’t even see what was happening on the screen; his attention was focused only on how hard Poe felt under his hand, and how painfully hard he was himself.  He didn’t return to reality until the end credits rolled, and he suddenly realized they not only had to stop, but they also had leave the theater.  Ben reluctantly drew his hand back, and a second later, Poe did the same.  They sat there through every last credit, not speaking or even looking at each other, and Ben began to wonder yet again what Poe was feeling and if he’d made a terrible mistake.

_At least I’m not hard anymore,_ Ben observed when they finally got up, after the credits were over and the ushers came in to clean the theater.  When he risked a look down at Poe, as they left the theater, Poe was looking back up at him.  His tan cheeks were flushed—from embarrassment, or excitement, or both—and the expression in his eyes was as nervous as Ben felt inside.

Ben smiled at him.  He couldn’t help it; Poe was just so _cute_.  When he saw Ben’s smile, Poe smiled back right away with a look of relief.  They grabbed each other’s hands at the same time.

“It’s only nine,” Poe commented as they left the theater and started through the cineplex lobby.  “Do you want to go somewhere else?”

Ben shrugged.  “I dunno anywhere else to go.  I guess we could ride around for a while.”

“Um. . . .”  Poe stopped walking and looked up at him again.  “We could go back to my house—i-if you wanted to.  My mom said she wants to meet you.”  Poe sounded a bit exasperated, but he laughed at the horrified look that came over Ben’s face.  “You can’t really blame her—and you’re gonna have to meet her eventually.  You know she’ll want to take pictures of us before the prom.”

“Yeah, I guess.  I just. . . .”  Ben looked down at himself, suddenly very glad he hadn’t painted all his nails or worn makeup.  “I just didn’t dress to meet anybody’s mother tonight.”

“Oh come on, you look great,” Poe insisted.  “It’ll just be for a minute, then we can go hang out in my room.  She’ll leave us alone.”  The slight, almost mischievous smile on his face made Ben reconsider.

“Yeah?”  Ben squeezed Poe’s hand a little tighter.  “Well, I don’t have to be home until—until later, so—”

His words were cut off by a hard shove from somebody behind him, hard enough to send him stumbling into Poe.  Ben looked back and scowled as the jerk from earlier pushed past them.

“Get outta the way, faggots,” he leered over his shoulder.  His date followed him, giving them both an apologetic and rather humiliated look as she passed.

“Hey, fuck off!” Ben snarled after him.  The guy was an older teenager, a senior or maybe even older than that.  He didn’t go to Ben and Poe’s small school, but he could have been from the larger high school across town, or he might have already graduated.  Either way, Ben wasn’t about to take any shit from him, especially since the guy was smaller than him though larger than Poe.

“Let it go,” Poe hissed up at Ben in a nervous voice, and Ben realized Poe was afraid he’d get angry.  He _was_ angry, but remembering how uncomfortable his temper made Poe, Ben sighed and nodded.

“I am.”

Their antagonist, however, overheard and turned back to them with a smirk.  “Yeah, I’d like to see you do anything about it.”

“Jason, stop it,” the girl muttered, but he ignored her and stepped forward to shove Ben again.

Ben had tensed up to resist the urge to fight back, but to his amazement, Poe hauled back and socked “Jason” right in the eye.  Ben and the girl both yelped, “Shit!” at the same moment, and Ben cast a worried look over his shoulder to see if anyone working at the theater had seen what happened.  He turned forward again when Jason’s yelp of pain turned to a growl.

“You little shit—” he began with a movement in Poe’s direction, and Ben forgot all about letting _anything_ go.  He grabbed the shorter guy’s collar and pulled him away from Poe.

“If you fucking touch him, I’ll bash your face in,” Ben informed him.  Jason’s eyes widened when he realized that Ben really _was_ willing to “do something about” the situation.

“Okay, okay, fine, I’m _sorry,_ ” he mumbled, wriggling away and backing up a step.  The area around his eye was already starting to swell and turn dark.  “Jesus.”  He gave Poe one last look—half resentful and half amazed—then turned away and hurried off, leaving his date to go after him.  As they left, Ben realized he was more disgusted by her tolerance of Jason’s behavior than by Jason himself.

“Um, w-we’d better get out of here too,” Poe stammered.  “I don’t _think_ anybody saw me, but. . . .”

“Yeah, come on.”  Ben took his hand again and pulled Poe out into the parking lot, toward his car.  When they reached it, though, he looked down at the shorter boy with a grin he couldn’t suppress.

“I never thought I’d see _you_ get in a fight.  Or that you could hit that hard.  You were _awesome_.”

Even in the dimly lit parking lot, Ben could see Poe’s blush, but he looked back up at Ben with a shy smile.  “Really?”

“Yeah, baby.  It was—”  Ben caught himself just before he said “kind of hot.”  Instead, he finished, “It was great.”

“Well,” said Poe, smiling a little more broadly, “I’m not gonna let anyone pick on my boyfriend!”

Ben was the one to blush then, hard.  “Am— _am_ I?  Your boyfriend?”

Poe looked up at him, head slightly to one side, as if considering; then he grinned outright.  “ _Yeah_ you are.”

\--

To be continued


	12. Chapter 12

Poe found it hard to sit still in the passenger seat of Ben’s car on the way back to his house.  He was scared and nervous and excited all at once.  Not only had he just punched someone for the first time in his life, he also officially had his first boyfriend, and that boyfriend had spent the past two hours feeling him up.  And now that boyfriend was about to meet Poe’s _mother_.

Ben himself kept quiet.  When Poe glanced at him, the taller boy was staring straight ahead at the dark road, jaw clenched and hands gripping the steering wheel.  _At least he’s nervous too,_ Poe thought.

Back at Poe’s house, Ben stood behind him while Poe unlocked the door, then followed him in and fidgeted in the little hall that led back to the living room, where Poe figured his mom was.  For the first time, Poe wondered what Ben thought about where he lived.  Poe had never been in Ben’s house before, but he’d driven past it, and it was at least twice as big as Poe’s.  _Probably a lot nicer inside too,_ Poe realized, biting at his inner lip.  _Oh well, nothing I can do about **that**._

“Um, come on,” he muttered as he started for the living room.  Ben followed him but hung back when Poe reached the doorway and called, “Mom?”

“Poe, you’re home already?”  His mom was sitting on the couch with B.B. beside her, both of them watching TV.  B.B. was snuggled against his mother’s arm, but when he heard Poe’s voice, he sat up straight and edged away a little.  Poe smiled but felt a little sad at the same time: a year ago, his kid brother wouldn’t have been embarrassed for Poe to see him cuddling with Lizzie.  B.B. was growing up.

The younger boy turned to look over the back of the couch and scowled when he saw Ben.  At the same time, Poe answered his mother.

“Yeah, um. . . Ben’s here.  He wanted to meet you.”

“ _Poe,_ ” Ben groaned in a whisper.  Poe glanced over his shoulder to smirk at his boyfriend, then grabbed his hand and led him around the couch to where Lizzie could see them.  He sort of regretted the hand-holding when his mother looked at their faces, at their clasped hands, then back at their embarrassed faces again.

“Uh, this is Ben,” Poe mumbled.  “And this is my mom.  And B.B.”

“Hello, Ben,” Lizzie smiled.

“Hi, Mrs. Dameron.”  Ben didn’t acknowledge B.B., who was still glaring at him, but Poe didn’t care; he was too busy being relieved that his boyfriend was being polite to his mother.

“How was the movie?” she asked them.  Poe felt Ben’s fingers twitch in his, and he hoped he wasn’t blushing himself.

“Kind of boring,” Poe told her.  “Lots of fight scenes, but uh. . . not much plot.  We’re—we’re gonna go watch TV in my room until Ben has to go home, okay?”

Lizzie was _still_ smiling in the way she did when she thought one of her sons was doing something cute.  “Okay.  Ben, Poe’s curfew is at midnight, so you’ll need to leave by then.”

“Er, yeah.  I mean, yes ma’am,” Ben stammered.  Poe couldn’t remember ever hearing Ben call _anybody_ “ma’am” before, and he started smiling himself.  B.B. made a sort of “harrumph” noise that sounded pretty funny coming from a ten-year-old kid, but Poe ignored him and tugged Ben toward his room instead.

“Thanks for being polite,” Poe whispered when they were out of the room.

“I can behave myself when I want to,” Ben grumbled.  Poe grinned at him and opened the door to his bedroom, then shut and locked it behind them when they were inside.  When Ben raised an eyebrow at him, Poe’s grin grew a little.

“Mom won’t try to bother us, but B.B. might,” he explained.  He turned on the small flat screen TV mounted on the wall across from his bed and added, “Now he can’t eavesdrop either.”

“Glad I don’t have a brother,” muttered Ben.  He looked around Poe’s small room as the other boy sat on the edge of the bed and pushed his shoes off.  “I thought your room would be neater than this.”

“It’s neat _enough_.”  Poe did sort of wish he had made his bed that day, but Ben didn’t seem to care as he sat down beside him.  As he bent over to untie his boots, Poe watched him.  He’d had a crush on Ben for almost two years, and sometimes he’d imagined what it would be like if Ben came over. . . .  Now it had finally happened.  Ben’s shaggy hair fell around his face as he grimaced and tugged at a stubborn boot, and Poe felt a sudden and ridiculous burst of love for him.  He loved everything about Ben: the contrast of his dark hair and eyes against the pale skin of his face, how his deep voice sounded as he swore at his boot, the way his painted fingernails looked as his long fingers yanked at the tangled laces.  Poe wanted to tackle Ben and cover him with kisses, but the intensity of that feeling was kind of scary.  Instead, he grabbed Ben’s arm and hauled on it to make him stop pulling.

“You’re just making it worse, doofus.  Here.”  Ben glowered at him through his hair, but Poe ignored the glare and pulled Ben’s leg up into his lap instead.

“Ow, hey!”  Ben was twisted sideways and fell back on one elbow by Poe’s grappling with his leg.  “Dammit, rooster.”

Poe picked at the knot in Ben’s shoelaces until he got it apart, then he pulled the boot off and dropped it with a thump as he muttered, “Dammit yourself, stork.  If you didn’t get so mad at everything, things’d be a lot easier.”  He kept holding Ben’s leg a moment, gripping his muscled calf through his jeans with one hand, and slipping the fingers of the other up past his sock to brush his skin.  _I bet his legs would look really hot if he didn’t wear such baggy clothes all the time,_ Poe thought as he stroked Ben’s skin with his fingertips.

Still lying back on his elbow, Ben was watching him and blushing.  He gently pulled his leg free and sat up, then put his hands on Poe’s upper arms.

“I still haven’t gotten to kiss you,” he reminded Poe.  Poe smiled and put his hands up to Ben’s jaw, holding him still so Poe could lean up and kiss him.  They kissed more slowly than they usually did, but Poe liked it just as much as hard, frantic making out—in fact, maybe he liked it a little bit better.  Ben’s arms slipped around him and held him, and Poe dropped his own arms down Ben’s back to cuddle closer to him.  When Ben pulled his mouth away a few minutes later, Poe leaned his head on the larger boy’s shoulder and felt Ben rest his cheek against his neck.

“I really like going out with you,” Ben mumbled into Poe’s shoulder.  “I don’t usually go anywhere, or if I do, it’s like, just to get away from my parents.  But I want to go places with you.”

“I like it too.”  Poe tilted his head so he could kiss Ben’s neck.  He barely touched it with his lips, but Ben made a little “mmm” noise and tilted his head to the side; apparently, he liked having his neck kissed.  Poe grinned and did it again, this time with his mouth open.

“Oh God, Poe,” Ben groaned.  “All this time I thought you were soooo innocent, and you’re really so. . . so _bad_.”

“No, I’m not!” Poe protested with a laugh.  He kissed Ben’s neck a third time, then sat up to look at him.  “Probably half the people in our class have done things a thousand times worse than us.  I mean. . . I was really surprised when you told me you’d never kissed anyone before me.  I thought. . . um, I thought maybe you’d. . . done a lot.”

“N-no,” Ben stammered.  “I kind of thought _you_ had.  You’re so popular.”  He grinned suddenly.  “And hot.”  He pulled Poe close to him and kissed him again.  “Really, really hot,” he mumbled into Poe’s mouth.

“Mmpgh. . . .”  Poe kissed him back, harder than before, then whispered, “Um, Ben, can I. . . take your shirt off?  Ever since you sent me that picture, I’ve wanted to see you without it.”

Ben pulled back again and looked down at him with an expression that was at the same time nervous and excited.  “I. . . I guess.  If I can take _yours_ off.”

“Yeah, okay,” Poe nodded.  “But you first!”  He dropped his hands to the hem of Ben’s shirt and grasped it, then pushed it up and slid his hands over Ben’s chest.  Ben shivered at his touch; then he lifted his arms so Poe could pull his shirt up over his head, rather than take time to undo his buttons.  Ben’s arms were too long for Poe to get the shirt all the way off them, and he chuckled as he had to help.  Finally, Poe tugged the shirt free of Ben’s arms and tossed it on the floor.

“Hey, if you mess my shirt up, Mom’ll be pissed,” Ben complained teasingly, looking after it, but when Poe didn’t reply, he looked at the smaller boy and blushed at how Poe was ogling him.  Ben’s chest was as pale as the rest of him, but even more defined than Poe had seen in the picture.  Poe put his hands up just in front of Ben’s shoulders and trailed them down over his pectoral muscles.

“You’re the really hot one,” Poe mumbled.  Ben squirmed a little and looked down at Poe’s dark hands on his white skin.

“I, um. . . well I have to work out some to stay in shape for fencing.  But. . . but it’s not. . . I’m not—stop trying to distract me.  You still have to let me take yours off too!”

“I wasn’t trying to distract you,” Poe told him, but he had the feeling Ben was actually trying to distract _him_.  _For some reason, he’s embarrassed about how he looks,_ Poe realized.  _I’ve gotta make him feel better about that. . . ._

Meanwhile, Ben had grabbed the bottom of Poe’s shirt and untucked it from his pants.  He paused, looking down at Poe’s face and swallowing visibly, then abruptly pulled Poe’s shirt up and off; Poe barely had time to get his arms up before Ben got him all tangled up.

“You messed up my hair. . . .”  Poe raked a hand through it and looked up at Ben.  The taller boy’s dark eyes swept down his body then back to his face, and Ben smiled.

“You’re beautiful, Poe,” he said.

Poe’s cheeks burned.  “I-I’m. . . you make it sound like I’m a _girl_.”

To his surprise, Ben actually laughed.  “No, I don’t!  You can be pretty and not be a girl.”  He put his arms around Poe again and hugged him close.  His warm, bare skin felt so good against Poe’s, and Poe snuggled against him and stroked Ben’s chest with one hand while hugging him with the other arm.

“Lie down with me,” Poe whispered.  Ben tensed immediately, his demeanor shifting from reassuring to nervous the second Poe upped the ante, so to speak.  But when Poe wriggled back up to the head of his twin bed to lean against his pillows, Ben moved too and stretched out next to him.  Poe lay against him and resumed rubbing Ben’s chest, and after a moment, Ben put his own hand on Poe’s.  His fingers drifted over Poe’s clavicles and down his breast bone.

“Your skin’s so soft,” Ben whispered.  Poe palmed Ben’s right pectoral muscle then brushed a fingertip over his nipple.  Ben gasped, and the way his eyes widened made Poe grin.

“That feel good?” he asked.  Ben looked away, embarrassed again, but nodded.  Poe smirked and did it again, then _kept_ doing it until Ben closed his eyes tightly and made a sexy little whimpering noise.

“P-poe. . . .”

The desperation in his voice thrilled Poe, and in a moment of inspiration, he moved his fingers and put his mouth there instead.  Ben nearly choked.

“Oh God, oh God, _Poe_ —!”

Once Poe started kissing and sucking on Ben’s chest, he decided he never wanted to stop.  He pushed Ben down onto his back and shifted to lie on top of him so he could reach Ben’s left side too.  The larger boy squirmed under him, still whimpering from time to time.  His hands groped for Poe’s back and closed over his shoulder blades, then slid down to his lower back and held Poe tight against him.

“I-is anyone else gonna see you without your shirt?” Poe panted in between kisses.

“Nn. . . no, why?”

Poe grinned.  “’Cos I’m gonna leave marks all over you!”

“Hey, no, don’t do—”  Ben’s protest dissolved into laughter as Poe licked and bit at his skin.  “That tickles!”  He squirmed more and rubbed up against Poe until Poe was whimpering too.

After a minute of that, Ben murmured, “Poe, I wanna kiss you some more. . . .”  As much as Poe was enjoying kissing Ben’s chest, he wanted to kiss his boyfriend’s mouth again too.  He lifted his head and wiggled upward until he could reach Ben’s lips.  Ben lifted his head to catch Poe’s mouth, then dropped it back on the pillow as Poe started kissing him deeply.  Although he had enjoyed their slow kisses, Poe now plunged his tongue into his boyfriend’s mouth, and Ben kissed him back just as hard.  He gripped Poe’s bare torso just above his waist before dropping his hands lower to grasp his hips.  Ben thrust up against his pelvis; then a second later, his hands shifted to grab Poe’s ass.  This time, Poe was the one to make the surprised noise, but then he kissed Ben even harder because he loved how it felt.  Ben simultaneously groped him and held Poe down against him as they ground together.

Poe finally had to stop kissing Ben so he could recover his breath.  He lifted his head and looked down at the other boy, who stared back up at him with dilated eyes and flushed cheeks.  Poe decided you _could_ look beautiful without being a girl, because Ben certainly looked beautiful.

“Ben. . . .”  Poe pushed his fingers into Ben’s hair and stroked it out on the pillow.  “You feel so good.”

“So do you, baby.”  Ben’s voice sounded hoarse.  “I love having you on top of me.”  He squeezed Poe’s ass again and shifted his hips in a half-circle to rub against him.  Poe bit his lip to hold back a whimper, then bent his head to kiss the end of Ben’s nose.

“You never did tell me about your dream,” Poe whispered.

“Hunh?”  Ben blinked up at him.

“You said you dreamed about me last week, and you were gonna tell me what happened. . . but you never did.”

“Oh.”  Ben’s face flushed a little deeper.  “I. . . no, it’s embarrassing.”

“You _said_ it was hot.”  Poe leaned his head down again to whisper against Ben’s ear, “I wanna hear it.”

Ben sighed.  “ _Fine_. . . you. . . .”  He closed his eyes, and Poe heard him swallow hard again.  “You were bossing me around, telling me what to do.”

Poe thought it was kind of funny, but he didn’t quite see what was so hot about it.  “I thought you didn’t like people telling you what to do?”

“Well no, but—but it was _you_ , and you were telling me to do stuff to you,” Ben nearly groaned.  His hips twitched under Poe’s, and Poe suddenly realized just what Ben was talking about—and that just talking about it was turning Ben on even more.

“Geez, Ben, and you said _I_ was bad,” Poe murmured with a smirk.  “That’s so. . . so _hot_.  What did I tell you to do?”

“You made me touch you,” Ben whispered in a hiss.  “And you told me _how_ to do it, and I did it just like you wanted me to, and it was the fucking hottest thing in the _world_.”

“Wow,” Poe breathed.  “You. . . you really want me to tell you what to do?”

“Yeah,” Ben whispered.  His voice shook a little from both nerves and excitement.  Poe swallowed hard, then slid off of Ben and lay next to him, on his side.

“Then touch me,” Poe whispered back.  “Touch me like you did in the theater.”  Ben sucked his lower lip between his teeth and bit down on it as he nodded.  He turned on his side too, facing Poe, then pressed his hand against Poe’s groin.  Poe was already hard, but he thought he got even harder when he felt the pressure from Ben’s palm grinding against him, then Ben’s fingers curling over the front of his jeans.

“Nngh,” Poe groaned through clenched teeth as he closed his eyes.  He was too embarrassed to look at Ben while the larger boy groped him, although he could feel Ben staring at _him_.  Almost like they were moving all by themselves, Poe’s hips rocked forward to push back against Ben’s hand.  It felt good—it felt _great_ , but the sensation of Poe’s clothes rubbing against him hurt a little too.

With his eyes still shut, Poe closed his hand over Ben’s wrist.  Ben froze, as if he thought Poe was about to push his hand away, but instead, Poe tugged it up against his bare stomach.  When Poe held it there, Ben slowly spread his fingers and pressed his warm palm against Poe’s skin.  Poe’s breath came a little faster, and he faltered.  Despite everything he had told Ben, he felt like he was doing something bad— _really_ bad.

_But I’m **not** ,_ Poe thought. _We’re not.  We care about each other, and I wouldn’t do this with anyone else._

Finally, he pushed Ben’s hand downward, along his abdomen inside his jeans.  When he let go of Ben’s wrist, Ben hesitated a second, but then he kept going.  Poe quivered under his touch and pressed his face against Ben’s shoulder, far too embarrassed to tell Ben what he wanted, regardless of how hot Ben would find the command.  What Poe wanted was pretty obvious, though, and Ben slid his hand farther down while holding Poe with one arm along his bare back and his cheek against Poe’s hair.  They both drew in sharp breaths when the back of Ben’s hand brushed against him.

“God, Poe,” Ben whispered as he rubbed the palm of his hand against Poe’s abdomen, “I never thought you’d let me touch you like this.”

“I want you to,” Poe nearly whimpered, still hiding his face.  “I’ve been thinking about it for—for a long time.”

“Me too.”  Ben shifted his hand, turning it outward, and squeezed him gently.  “Is—is that okay?”

It was more than okay, and Poe managed to mumble in the affirmative.  Ben began to stroke up and down with his hand, hesitantly at first then more firmly when Poe really did start to whimper.  He may have told Ben how to do it in Ben’s dream, but in real life, incoherent noises were all Poe could manage.  He began to thrust up into Ben’s fist, and Ben pumped him harder, at the same time holding Poe closer against him and breathing more heavily.  Poe had the vague idea that he should be doing the same thing to Ben at the same time, but he was clinging to Ben’s shoulders with both arms, and anyway, if he moved, Ben might stop what he was doing, and Poe _never_ wanted him to stop.  After only a couple minutes, though, Poe realized he didn’t have much choice in how long it was going to last.

“Ben, I’m—I’m gonna come!” he gasped, more embarrassed than ever that it was happening so quickly.

“Do it,” Ben nearly growled, his voice husky.  “Come for me!”

Poe did, hard.  He pressed his mouth against Ben’s shoulder to muffle his cries as he shuddered in the larger boy’s arm; then when it was over, he slumped against Ben, breathing hard and still shivering a little.

“Um. . . are you okay?” Ben asked when Poe didn’t move after a few seconds.  He pulled his hand back out of Poe’s jeans and rested it against his stomach.

“Yeah,” Poe breathed blissfully.  “I. . . I’m good.  Ben. . . .”  He lifted his head and was finally able to meet his boyfriend’s eyes.  “You—you’re wonderful.  _Amazing._ ”

Ben’s dark eyes were still dilated as he looked back and murmured, “So are you.  God, Poe, you look so _pretty_ when you come!”

Poe felt himself blush, then blush even harder when he realized how sticky Ben’s hand was against his skin.

“Oh, uh—I—erm, I think I’ve got some Kleenex here somewhere,” Poe stammered.  He rolled over on his other side to dig around between his bed and the nightstand to find a box of tissues.  He mumbled, “Sorry,” as he handed one to Ben.  “I didn’t mean to—uh, all over your hand, and it happened too fast and—”

Ben shut him up by kissing him, hard and deep.  When he finally pulled back and wiped his hand off, Poe grinned at him.

“Want me to do it to you?”

“ _Hell_ yes,” Ben blurted out, then added, “I-I mean, only if _you_ want to.  You don’t _have_ to—”  He broke off when Poe pressed close beside him again and put his hand on his stomach.

“Can I undo your jeans?” Poe asked, thinking that would make things a little easier.  But he felt Ben’s body tense against him, and the larger boy gave his head a tight shake.

“N-no, don’t.”  Ben looked down at him, and in response to Poe’s questioning expression, muttered, “I—I don’t want you to. . . to see me.  There, I mean.  I’m sorry, I just. . . .”

“No, don’t be sorry,” Poe reassured him, secretly finding it sweet that Ben was so shy.  “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”  Ben gave him a grateful look and bent his head to kiss Poe again, softly this time.  Afterward, Poe grinned and asked, “You _do_ want me to touch you though, right?”

“Oh yeah.”  When Ben grinned back at him, still a little shyly, Poe slid his hand down Ben’s jeans.  Poe was a lot less nervous now that it was Ben’s turn, and he liked feeling his boyfriend tremble when Poe’s small hand closed over him.  Ben wore his jeans a lot looser than Poe did, and Poe was able to stroke him rapidly.

“Nnngh, Poe. . . Poe, _Poe_!” groaned Ben.  He tilted his head back, and Poe couldn’t resist kissing his pale neck at the same time.  When Ben started thrusting into his hand, he moaned louder, and Poe cut him off with a kiss to the mouth.

“Shh,” he whispered with a smirk.  “If you get louder than the TV, someone might hear you.”  Even so, he loved hearing Ben cry out and knowing that he could make his boyfriend feel that good.  He pumped Ben faster and watched his face as Ben gritted his teeth and closed his eyes.  Poe felt even better about himself when Ben couldn’t last any longer than he could.  Ben’s thrusts got stronger and quicker, and it felt like he got even harder in Poe’s grip.

“Poe—” Ben gasped, but before he could say anything else, he tensed and came hard in Poe’s hand.  Ben’s whole body shook until he finished; then he lay on his back with his eyes still closed until his breathing calmed down.  As Poe watched him, he was almost overwhelmed by what he felt.

_I love you,_ Poe thought.  He wanted to say it, to tell Ben, but he didn’t trust his own feelings.  For years, he’d heard adults—even his own mother—say that kids his age were too young to know what love really was.  That teenaged relationships never lasted.  What if they were right, and Poe said something he thought he meant but didn’t, not really?  What if Ben agreed with them and thought Poe was being silly?  What if Ben didn’t feel the same way about him?

Then Ben opened his eyes, and Poe settled for asking, “Did I do okay?”

“Yeah,” Ben whispered.  “You were okay.”  He couldn’t even say it with a straight face, and he grinned again.  Poe smiled back.

After they’d managed to clean themselves off some, Poe curled up in Ben’s arms, and they just lay there holding each other.  Poe decided he’d never felt so content before as he did then, resting his head on Ben’s chest while his boyfriend’s long fingers stroked his hair.

“I have to go in a little while,” Ben sighed after some time had passed.  “My. . . my curfew’s at eleven.”

“Okay.”  Poe nuzzled his chest then leaned up and kissed him again.  “I wish you didn’t have to go.”

“Me too.”  Ben kept stroking his hair as he kissed Poe back.  “I thought about not telling you. . . it’s so early.  But then you’d get mad at me if I got in trouble for being late and you found out.”

Poe chuckled and hugged him tightly.  “You’re right, I _would_ have been mad.  And it’s not _that_ early.”

“It’s earlier than _yours_.  I thought. . . maybe you’d make fun of me for it.”

“Oh come on, you know I wouldn’t make fun of you for anything—except maybe your legs, _stork_.”  Poe paused then added, “Although your legs are really pretty sexy.”

“Not as sexy as your short little legs, rooster,” Ben countered, dropping his own hand to the back of Poe’s thigh and squeezing it.  “You drive me crazy wearing tight jeans like this.”

“They’re not _that_ tight,” Poe protested.  “I mean, you got your hand in them and—”

Ben groaned.  “Shut up.  If you start talking about it, I’ll wanna do it again, and we don’t have time.”  He squeezed Poe’s leg again, then sat up and looked down at the smaller boy.  “I’d better go.”

“Yeah, okay.”  Poe sat up too and started to look for his shirt, but Ben stopped him by pulling Poe into his arms and hugging him hard.  Startled but pleased, Poe hugged him back, pressed against his bare chest.  “You feel so good,” he murmured.  “You’re warm.”

“So’re you.  Poe. . . .”  Ben never finished whatever he was starting to say, and finally he let the smaller boy go and got up to get his shirt.  He tossed Poe’s to him and watched as Poe pulled it on.

“Your hair’s all messed up,” Ben smirked before putting his own shirt back on too.

Poe made a face at him.  “So’s yours.”  He stood and reached up to smooth Ben’s hair down with his fingers.  Poe had to raise up on his toes to reach high enough, which made Ben smirk even more.

When they slipped out of his room, Poe was glad to see that his mother had already gone to bed, and of course it was way past B.B.’s bedtime too.  Poe went outside with Ben, who stopped and looked down at Poe before going to his car.

“Will you go out with me again tomorrow?”

Poe sighed, “I can’t.  Mom wants me and B.B. to help her do yard work, and she’s taking us out to eat tomorrow night to pay us back for it.  But. . . what about Sunday afternoon?  We could do something then.”

“Okay.”  Ben smiled at him and rubbed his thumb over Poe’s cheek.  Poe felt a flood of emotions so intense, it almost hurt.

“I’m gonna miss you,” he told Ben in a rush.  “I mean, I know that sounds stupid, but. . . but I wish you didn’t have to go.”

“It doesn’t sound stupid.  I’m gonna miss you too, rooster.”  Ben hugged him one more time, and Poe pressed his face against the taller boy’s shirt.  “I’ll see you soon, okay?  And I’ll be thinking about you.  All the time.”

“I’ll be thinking about you too.”  Poe pulled back and leaned up to give him a quick kiss before it got any harder to say goodbye.  “Now get out of here.  I’ll text you tomorrow.”

“Okay, baby.”  Ben planted a kiss on Poe’s forehead, making Poe feel shorter than ever, before going to his car.  Poe waved to him then went back inside so he wouldn’t have to see Ben drive off.  After locking the door behind him, Poe leaned against it and sighed.  Sunday seemed impossibly far away.

\--

To be continued


	13. Chapter 13

When Ben got home at five minutes to eleven, his father was waiting up for him in the kitchen.  Ben knew Leia had put Han up to it, and that made him resent it even more.

“You’re home on time,” Han observed.  He sounded surprised, and Ben grudgingly admitted to himself that he had good reason to be.

“Yep,” Ben muttered.  He went to the sink for a glass of water, having to edge past his father to do so.

“How was your. . . date?”

Ben sighed heavily, as much at the skeptical way Han said “date” as at the question itself.  He imagined answering honestly: “Oh, it was awesome because we felt each other up in the theater then jerked each other off, and by the way, I think I’m in love with him.”

“Fine,” he growled.  “Good _night_.”  He heard Han reply as Ben stalked to his room, but Ben ignored him.

By the time he got into bed a few minutes later, he had forgotten all about his father and was thinking only of Poe: mostly about what they’d done on Poe’s bed, but a little too about Poe launching himself at the larger guy in the theater when he’d gone to shove Ben.  _He was defending me,_ Ben thought blissfully.  No one had _ever_ done that before; no one had ever wanted to.  Not that Ben couldn’t take care of himself (well, except for the time that really short little bastard and that really tall big bastard had beat him up last year), but it was sweet of Poe to try.

_He’d probably do it for any of his friends,_ Ben’s more practical—or pessimistic—side broke in.  Then, in a very unusual move, he countered it.  _But at least that means I’m his friend **and** his boyfriend.  And he certainly wouldn’t do the **rest** of what we did with any of his friends, I know that much._   Ben remembered how Poe had trembled in his arm when Ben got him off, how Poe had tried so hard not to make any noise but cried out against Ben’s shoulder anyway, and how much Ben had loved him just then.  He honestly hadn’t cared if Poe would do the same for him or not; all that mattered was making Poe happy.  Ben supposed that was what love was all about, as trite as it sounded.

On Sunday afternoon, he met Poe at Starbucks.  When Ben got there, Poe was already waiting for him.

“Sorry if I’m late,” Ben mumbled when Poe hopped up from his chair and practically darted over to him.

“You’re not late, stork.  I was early.”  Poe grinned, then surprised Ben by leaning up on his toes and pecking Ben right on the mouth, in front of anyone who happened to be watching.  Nobody _was_ watching, Ben realized a second later, but it made him feel warm inside all the same, knowing that Poe didn’t care if people saw them together.

After they bought their over-priced, over-roasted iced coffee and sat down together at a small table in the corner, Ben fidgeted, eyeing Poe’s hand resting on the table top.  Finally, he decided that if Poe was bold enough to kiss him in public, the least Ben could do was hold his hand.  He slipped his larger hand over Poe’s and squeezed his fingers.  Poe looked up at him in surprise, smiled, and folded his fingers over Ben’s.

“I love your nail polish,” Poe sighed, almost in a dreamy tone, as he rubbed his thumb over Ben’s fourth finger nail.

“You do?”  Ben took a long drink through his straw to give himself a chance to work up his nerve before he muttered, “I, uh. . . was thinking about painting all of them, but I didn’t know if you’d like it.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“’Cos it might be too. . . too gay.  Or girly.  Or whatever.”  Ben sucked on his straw again as he risked a glance up at Poe, through the strands of hair that fell around his eyes.

“I think it would be hot,” Poe murmured, looking back at him.  “And anyway, I guess, um. . . I guess we _are_ pretty gay.  Being boyfriends and all.”

For some reason, that struck Ben as funny, and he chuckled, “Yeah, I guess so.”  He smiled at Poe, who visibly relaxed and smiled back adoringly.

_How can he possibly look at me like that?_ Ben wondered in amazement.  _He’s so perfect. . . .  Why does he like **me**?_

“Uh, so how was the yard work?” he asked aloud in an attempt to find a less-emotional topic.

Poe rolled his eyes.  “Sucked.  And my arms hurt now from using the hedge clippers all day.  I guess it’s good for building muscle though.”  He playfully flexed his left arm like a weight lifter, making the sleeve of his t-shirt slide up.  Poe might have been joking, but Ben admired his exposed and rather shapely brown arm anyway.

“Your arms are cute,” he said without thinking.

“Really?”  Poe’s cheeks flushed pink, but he smiled again as he dropped his arm.  “I. . . never thought about arms being cute before.”

“Yours are,” Ben muttered.

“In that case, I guess being sore is worth it.”  As Poe slurped a gulp of coffee through his straw, Ben’s mouth twitched in a smirk.

“Want me to rub them for you?  Might make them hurt less.”

Poe nearly choked and gave a little cough as he turned even pink.  “Oh, um. . . y-yeah, I’d like that.  But, um, not in here, hunh?”

“Duh.  I’m not gonna start feeling you up in Starbucks, don’t worry,” Ben retorted, his smirk growing a little anyway at the thought.

“Feeling me up?  I thought we were talking about my arms.”  The tables were abruptly turned as Poe gave him a positively wicked look.

“I _was_ ,” Ben protested, blushing a little himself.  “I don’t know what _you’re_ thinking about.”

Poe’s voice dropped to a near whisper.  “I’m thinking about what you did to me Friday night.  I haven’t _stopped_ thinking about it.”

Ben squirmed slightly in his seat and clutched Poe’s hand a little harder as he mumbled, “Me either.”

“And. . . .”  Poe hesitated before admitting, “And now I’m also thinking about what it would like, you doing it to me with—with all your nails painted.  It would be _so_ hot.”

This time, Ben was the one who nearly choked, and he wasn’t even drinking anything at the moment.

“Oh God, _Poe,_ ” he hissed.  “You’re—you’re _awful_.”  Poe’s dark eyes flicked over his boyfriend’s face as he judged Ben’s reaction; then he apparently decided Ben meant “awful” in a _good_ way.

“You’re corrupting me,” Poe announced in a low voice, still with the wicked look.  “That’s what I get for dating a ‘bad boy.’  You’re getting better-behaved—and I’m getting _worse_.”

“Don’t blame it all on _me_ , rooster,” Ben teased him.  He had recovered from his surprise (if not from how excited Poe’s comment had made him) and decided to make Poe squirm too.  “I didn’t say _anything_ about painting my nails just to give you something to look at while I jerk you off.”

“ _Ben!_ ”  Poe _did_ squirm, visibly.  “You don’t have to say it like _that_.”

“Why not?” Ben challenged, leaning forward a little to grin at the other boy.  “You were the one who brought it up.  It’s the same thing, no matter what you call it.”

“Yeah, but. . . okay _fine_.”  Poe pretended to pout, which only made Ben _more_ excited when he saw his boyfriend purse his pretty mouth.  “But let’s talk about something else, in here anyway.”

“Okay,” Ben sighed.  Nevertheless, he was kind of glad to change the subject to one less titillating.  “Uh, my mom wanted me to ask you something, anyway.”

“Your mom?”  Poe blinked at him and took another drink.  Ben glanced aside to avoid seeing Poe’s lips wrapped around his straw.

“Yeah.”  Ben paused, not really wanting to go through with it, then went ahead, “She’s making me go with my dad next Saturday to get fitted for my tuxedo, and. . . uh, she told me to ask if you wanted to come too, for yours.”  He tried not to cringe, thinking of having to introduce Poe to his dorky dad then spend the whole afternoon together.  “I mean, it’s fine if you don’t wanna go, but she’s gonna ask me if I asked you, and. . . .”  He trailed off, puzzled, when he saw the slightly sad expression in Poe’s eyes.  _What did I say wrong **this** time?_ Ben wondered with an internal groan.  It seemed like most of the work of being in a relationship involved backpedaling after inadvertently screwing up, repeatedly.

“You don’t want me to come with you?” Poe asked after a second, and Ben exhaled in relief that that was all it was.

“Baby, no, I didn’t mean that!” he rushed to explain.  “I just. . . my dad is embarrassing.  Like, _really_ embarrassing.  And I know he’s gonna do something dumb in front of you.  I’d rather us go by ourselves, but my parents said they’d pay for my tux as long as he came too—something about not trusting me with the credit card.”  Ben tried a cautious smirk and relaxed more when Poe laughed.

“Your parents probably have good reason.  And I’d love to go with you—I’ve never met your dad before.  I’m sure he’s not _that_ bad.”

_You have no idea,_ Ben thought.  Aloud, he added, “Well, Mom said your mother probably doesn’t want to spend her Saturday getting you measured and having to keep your brother entertained at the same time.”  He was startled when Poe’s eyes softened.

“That’s really sweet of her,” Poe murmured.  “I hadn’t even thought about that.”

“Yeah, well.”  Ben shifted in his seat.  “Um, and the better part is that he’s gonna take us out to eat afterwards, then you can come over.  If—if you want to.”

“Yeah!” Poe said with more enthusiasm.  “I’ve been by your house before—it looks _awesome_.”

“Uh, well, it’s. . . my house,” Ben stammered, not sure what was so great about it.  True, it was at least twice the size of Poe’s, but still, Ben hadn’t ever really thought about it being particularly “awesome.”  He went on, “But yeah, I want you to come over.  No little brothers to worry about at my house.”

“Yeah,” Poe agreed as he gave Ben’s hand another squeeze.  “Hey, so like, how does it work when two guys go to the prom together—like do we buy each other flowers and stuff?  And if we don’t have a dress to match, what color ties do we wear?”

“I. . . how should I know?” Ben protested.  “I’ve never done this before!”

“Well, neither have I!”  Poe gave Ben a suspicious look when the taller boy suddenly smirked again.  “What?”

“I have a solution,” Ben grinned at him.  “You wear a dress, and I’ll match _you_.”

Poe’s face turned almost completely red.  “I—you’re a _jerk_ , Ben!  You’re the one who looks good in nail polish— _you_ should wear the dress!”  Ben just laughed.

After they finished their drinks, they went outside, still holding hands.  Poe seemed to have forgiven Ben for the dress comment, so Ben asked, a little shyly, if Poe wanted to go sit in his car before they had to go home.

“I’d ask you to come over right now,” Ben muttered as they walked to where he had parked, behind the building.  “But I’ve gotta go soon.  It’s Mom’s birthday today, and Dad’s making me go out to eat with them.”  Ben groaned when he said it, but Poe didn’t see it as something to complain about.

“Aw, that’s nice!  You have a great family,” he said cheerfully.  Ben stared down at him in disbelief.

“You’re kidding.  I can’t _stand_ them.”

“Stop being a jerk,” Poe ordered as they got in Ben’s car.  Poe settled into the passenger seat with his short legs crossed Indian-style, then turned to lecture Ben.  “You’re lucky—you have two parents who care about you _and_ each other.”

“Well, they fight a lot,” said Ben, feeling both guilty and a little resentful at being scolded.  “I think Dad’s trying to make it up to her.”

“Then that’s nice too.  At least he’s trying.  My dad didn’t even _bother_ trying,” Poe told him.  Ben just felt guilty then, and he glanced over at the other boy.

“Sorry.  I. . . wasn’t thinking about your parents.  I guess you’re right.  But I still don’t want to have dinner with them,” he added defensively when Poe gave him a slightly smug look.  “They always want to talk to me about stuff, and I know they’re gonna ask me a bunch of stuff about _you_.”

“What’s wrong with that?” Poe demanded, although now he was smiling.  “I happen to think I’m very interesting!”

“Cocky little rooster,” Ben grumbled, but at the same time, he raked a hand through Poe’s soft, wavy hair affectionately.  “How would you like it if _your_ mom started asking you questions about _me_?”

“I guess it could get embarrassing,” Poe finally admitted.  “But it’ll just be for a little while, right?  And next week, I’ll be with you at dinner.”

“Yeah, and then Dad can ask _you_ the questions and embarrass me even worse.”  Ben wasn’t exactly kidding, but he managed to say it with a smile.  “But instead of talking about my parents, want me to rub your arms now?”

“Okay.”  Poe smiled back shyly and stretched out his arms toward Ben, resting his wrists on his left thigh.  “They hurt all the way up.”

Ben reached over the console to put a hand on each of Poe’s lower arms and started to rub them.  He cupped his hands underneath and ran them up and down Poe’s arms while massaging the muscles on top with his thumbs.  Poe’s skin felt smooth and warm under Ben’s hands.

“Is that okay?” Ben murmured, and Poe nodded.

“Yeah, it feels nice.  I. . . I like it when you touch me.  Your hands feel so good.”

“And I like touching you,” Ben told him.  He rubbed Poe’s lower arms a little longer, then moved his hands up to the smaller boy’s biceps, pushing his fingers up under Poe’s shirt sleeves a little.

“Owww,” Poe groaned when Ben squeezed his arms.  Ben froze.

“Is that too hard?”

“Nngh, no, it feels great.”  Poe gave an embarrassed little laugh.  “Sore, but great.  I guess I should start lifting or something.  I feel like a wuss.”

“Not from this end,” Ben retorted.  “You’re pretty muscular.”  He rubbed his thumbs in slow circles on Poe’s muscles.

“N-not really,” Poe stammered.  “Not like you—oh God, _Ben. . . ._ ”  Poe broke off in a moan and let his eyes drop closed.  Ben took the opportunity to stare at his boyfriend’s pretty face, admiring Poe’s long, black lashes resting on his tan cheeks and the slight curve of his lower lip.  Eyeing that mouth made Ben long to kiss Poe, a longing that only grew when Poe started making sexy little whimpering noises as Ben kept rubbing his arms.

“Poe,” Ben breathed when he finally couldn’t stand it any longer.

“What?” asked Poe, sounding a little breathless himself as he opened his eyes.  Ben let go of his left arm and raised his hand to touch Poe’s cheek.  When he leaned in, Poe did too and closed his eyes again.  Ben kissed him softly at first, then a little harder when Poe parted his lips.  Soon Ben was the one moaning while he felt Poe’s tongue flicking into his mouth.  When they paused for breath, Poe whispered Ben’s name against his lips.

“Ben. . . .”  Poe pressed several light kisses to his mouth.  “I love kissing you. . . .”

“I love it too.”  _And I love you,_ Ben added silently.  He wrapped his arms around Poe’s shoulders and pulled him close to cover his cheek and neck with caresses.  Poe whimpered happily and tilted his head, resting his head on Ben’s shoulder while Ben kissed his neck.  Ben loved everything about Poe: the warmth of his skin, his scent, the soft sounds Poe made when Ben’s mouth touched him.  And more than that, he loved Poe himself.  _I’d do anything for him,_ Ben thought as he nuzzled the hollow between Poe’s neck and shoulder.  _Anything to make him happy. . . to see that pretty smile. . . ._ He leaned his forehead against Poe’s neck and sighed.  He wanted to tell Poe that, all of it, but he was afraid to say it.  Not that he thought Poe would do something like laugh or make fun of him, but that Poe would think he was exaggerating or didn’t mean it. . . or that, even if Poe did believe him, Poe wouldn’t feel the same way.

“I have to go,” Ben mumbled after they had held each other for a little while.  “I wish I didn’t, but—”

“It’s okay.”  Poe sat up, still embracing him, and smiled.  “You can’t be late for your mom’s dinner.  Tell her happy birthday from me, okay?”

Ben chuckled.  “Okay, but you’re a little suck-up, you know that?”

“I’m not sucking up!  I mean it!” Poe grinned.  “But it can’t hurt either to make sure my boyfriend’s mother likes me.”

“Of course she likes you, rooster.  You’re like the best student in her entire school,” Ben chided as he pecked Poe on the end of his nose.  “But you’re right—it can’t hurt since you’ll see her at my house next weekend.”

“Will you paint your nails for me then?” Poe whispered.

“My dad would freak out if I had them painted when we went to dinner,” Ben pointed out, but the disappointed look on Poe’s face made him give in.  “But when we get home, you can help me paint them just for you, okay?”

“Really?  Okay!”  Poe kissed him again, then murmured in his ear, “Then once your fingers are all pretty, you can jerk me off again.”

“ _Poe_ ,” Ben groaned through clenched teeth.  “Don’t talk about that _now._  I have to leave!”

Poe sat back and gave him an angelic smile.  “Then you’d better go before you’re late.  I’ll see you at school tomorrow.”

“Okay, baby.”  Ben leaned forward and kissed his cheek.  Although it felt sort of like a silly, childish thing to do, it also felt. . . _right_.  Like saying “I love you” without words.

“Ben. . . .”  Poe abruptly hugged him tightly then gave him a tender, almost longing look before he got out of the car.  “You know what?” Poe added as he leaned down to peek back in the door.  “I like it when you call me baby.”

\--

To be continued


	14. Chapter 14

Work on the prom progressed over the next week, and against all expectations, things were coming together: Phasma’s team worked out the menu with the country club; Finn and Rey’s group finalized the t-shirt design and started taking orders; and Ben and Poe spent more than six hours over the course of the week painting.  By six o’clock Friday afternoon, Poe’s arms were sore all over again, not to mention covered in drying paint, but the scenery was almost finished.

“I can’t believe we’ve done all this by ourselves,” Poe groaned as they rinsed the brushes in the locker room.  “I mean, I can _feel_ it.  I just can’t believe it.”

“You were right. . . we make a good team.”  Ben dried his hands on a paper towel, then brushed his hair back out of his eyes.  “Um, are you still coming over tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’ll be there around three.”  Poe dried his own hands and tried to scrub some of the paint off his arm with the paper towel.  “I might still be painted, but I’ll be there.”  He looked up at Ben’s grumpy expression and smirked.  “I’d think you’d be happier about having your boyfriend over for the first time.”

“Ugh, you know it’s not that,” Ben grumbled.  “It’s the shopping trip I’m not looking forward to.”

“Well _I_ am,” declared Poe.  “You’re gonna look _so_ hot in a tuxedo.”

Ben’s cheeks reddened as he muttered, “No I’m not, I’m gonna look _stupid_.  Like a penguin.”

“You’re too tall to be a penguin,” Poe observed, “and your legs are too long.  If anyone looks like a penguin, it’ll be me.”  He hugged Ben and leaned on his chest as Ben put his arms around his shoulders.  “I’m sorry I can’t go out tonight, but I promised Mom I’d watch B.B.  I guess I could have asked if you could come over, but—”

“I’m glad you didn’t,” Ben interrupted with a sigh.  Apparently, he was determined to be dismal about everything.  “She probably would’ve said no.  I mean _I_ wouldn’t trust you alone with me even without a little brother to keep out of trouble.”

 “Why?” Poe teased, equally determined to lighten up Ben’s mood.  “Just what would you plan on doing to me?”

“With a kid around, nothing.”

“I could lock him in his room,” Poe suggested, snuggling a little closer—and making sure he rubbed up against Ben as he did so.

“You wouldn’t do that, and you know it,” Ben protested, although he was starting to squirm.  “Y-you—you adore that kid.  And anyway, he—nngh, Poe, stop doing that!—he doesn’t like me.”

“He’s just jealous because I’m spending so much time with you.”  Poe stopped rubbing, only to lean up on his toes and plant a kiss on the side of Ben’s neck as he murmured, “Once the prom’s over, I’ll be home in the afternoons, and he’ll be happier.”  Ben started to say something in reply, but the words dissolved into a moan when Poe kissed his neck again.

“Don’t you—ahh, don’t you have to get home if you’re babysitting tonight?” the taller boy panted.

“What are you complaining about?”  Poe sank back down on his heels and gave Ben a sulky look that was half playful and half serious.  “We haven’t done anything but paint all week.  You’re not tired of me already, are you?”

“You wanna know why I’m complaining?”  Ben took a step back to lean against the cement block wall and pulled Poe after him by the shoulders.  “I’m complaining because I have the hottest boyfriend in the entire world, and I haven’t been able to make out with him all week. . . .”  He slid his arms down Poe’s back to press the smaller boy up against him, then bent his head to nuzzle Poe’s ear as he whispered, “And if he keeps teasing me, I’m gonna want to do him right _now_.”

“Nngh, Ben. . . .”  Poe turned his head to catch Ben’s mouth, and they kissed until they were breathless.  Finally, Poe made himself back away as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.  “I guess I really do need to go.  Will you call me tonight?”

“Yeah.  If you’ll send me a selfie.”  Ben grinned.  “A hot one.”

“Hmph, you’re not gonna see anything in a selfie you haven’t seen yet in person,” Poe sniffed.  He gathered up the wet paintbrushes, but Ben took them from him.

“I’ll put these up, you go on, rooster.”  Ben leaned down to kiss Poe’s forehead.  “Talk to you later.”

“Yeah, thanks.  Stork.”  Poe smiled and squeezed his boyfriend’s hand before he left for home.

The next day, Poe drove to Ben’s house in the middle of the afternoon.  He was nervous—about meeting Ben’s father, about seeing Principal Organa outside of school, about making prom preparations, not for the class but for the two of them, as a couple.  He’d known that his mother was agitated about it too; she’d had that “my little boy is growing up” look on her face all morning.  _At least B.B.’s satisfied for now,_ Poe thought as he checked his hair in the rearview mirror one last time after pulling up into the driveway at Ben’s house.  _Hanging out with me last night really cheered him up._

Poe got out of his car and walked up to Ben’s front door, eyeing the house as he went.  It was made of red brick and looked even more impressive close up than it did from the street.  The doors to the garage were closed, but there were three of them, and just one floor of the two-story house looked bigger than Poe’s entire home.  The lawn was cut short (which reminded Poe that his mom had been nagging him to mow the grass for a week now), and the bushes were perfectly trimmed.  Poe had a feeling that none of the Solo-Organa family had done the yardwork themselves.

A few seconds after Poe rang the doorbell, Ben opened the door, looking as nervous as Poe felt.

“Hi,” he murmured.

“Hi.”  When Poe smiled up at him, Ben relaxed a little and pulled the smaller boy into his arms.  Poe hugged him back and leaned up to kiss him.  Ben put a hand to the back of Poe’s head and held it to kiss him hard, but just as Poe was starting to get into it, he heard a man’s voice calling from elsewhere in the house.

“Ben!  Is that Poe?”  Ben drew back and let Poe go with a groan.

“ _Ugh,_ ” he said to Poe, then yelled, “ _Yes_ , Dad, it’s Poe.”  Ben took Poe’s hand and squeezed it, but he let go before turning and gesturing Poe to follow him.  “Come on,” he muttered.  “The sooner we get this over with, the sooner I get you back here, alone.”

“Okay.  And cheer up, stork, it won’t be so bad,” Poe insisted, but Ben only rolled his eyes.  As Poe followed him, he noticed that Ben had taken off his nail polish completely.  His nails still looked nice though, longer than Poe could ever grow his without getting frustrated and biting them off.  _He has such pretty hands,_ Poe thought, a bit dreamily, as he imagined getting to paint Ben’s nails later.

He shook himself out of his reverie when Ben brought him into the kitchen.  It was about twice the size of Poe’s, with appliances that looked practically new, but Poe’s attention was mostly held by the man who must be Ben’s father.  He didn’t look much like Ben, except maybe through his brown eyes, but he was sort of handsome.  He had shaggy grey hair that, like Ben’s, needed cutting, and it looked like he had put even less thought into his clothes than his son had.

“Hi, Poe,” he said as he crossed the kitchen toward them, sticking out his hand.

“Hi, Mr. Solo.”  Poe shook his hand and managed a nervous smile.

“Uh, so,” Mr. Solo muttered as he looked Poe over.  “You’re shorter than I expected.  Maybe you’ll get a discount on your suit.”

“ _Dad!_ ” Ben growled.  Mr. Solo gave his son a mildly curious look, and Poe burst out laughing.  Ben’s father was obviously as nervous as the rest of them, and Poe couldn’t help but like him.

“Ben, it’s fine,” Poe told him, then grinned at Ben’s dad.  “And if I get a discount, they’ll charge Ben extra.”

“That’d be just my luck,” Ben’s father sighed.  “You boys ready to go?”

“Yes,” muttered Ben.  “We’re taking Mom’s car, right?”

“Why?  What’s wrong with _my_ car?”  Judging from Mr. Solo’s smirk, Poe figured he enjoyed teasing his son.  Ben, however, didn’t look too pleased.

“Your car’s a piece of shit,” he grumbled and stalked to a door that led to the garage.  Poe was a bit startled, but by now, he knew Ben well enough to know he just wanted to get a reaction.

“Don’t let your mother hear you talking like that,” Mr. Solo sighed.

“Or _my_ mother, unless you’re trying to get out of a date with me!” added Poe, deciding to help Ben’s dad out a little.  He was starting to feel sorry for the guy.  Ben shot Poe a disgruntled look but held the door open for him all the same.

They sat in the back seat of Principal Organa’s car, a large, white SUV that was impeccably clean inside.  As Mr. Solo climbed into the driver’s seat—Poe wondered just how his tiny wife managed to clamber up into the thing every day—Poe looked across the garage at the other two vehicles.  Ben’s sleek black car was on the far right, and what must have been Mr. Solo’s car was in the middle: an old grey Mustang.  Poe thought it was kind of cool looking, but he was glad the three of them weren’t crammed into it together, all the same.

Ben’s father tried to make small talk on the way to the formal wear shop, but he was awful at it.  Ben wasn’t much help; he answered in growled monosyllables and glared out the window for most of the trip.  Poe thought it was all kind of funny, in a way—the idea of Ben’s mother forcing both of them to do something neither wanted to do, in the hope that they would bond or something—but he also was starting to get a little ticked off at Ben.  As Poe had told him the week before, Ben was lucky to have any father at all in his life, and Ben’s dad was actually pretty cool.  Poe tried to carry on a conversation with him while he pulled out his phone and texted Ben, “stop being a jerk.”

When Ben’s phone buzzed, he took it out, read the message, gave Poe a suspicious look, then texted back, “im not.”

“yes u are. stop it or im going home after dinner.”

Ben scowled, and a second later, Poe got the message, “manipulative little prick.”

Poe scowled himself and almost dashed off an angry message back, but then he decided getting in a fight wouldn’t help matters.  He thought for a minute instead, then texted, “its not little.”

Ben nearly choked trying to hold back an abrupt laugh.  Poe smirked in triumph, deciding he’d won the battle, until Mr. Solo glanced at them through the rearview mirror.

“What’s going on back there?” he asked, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.

Ben blushed almost scarlet and muttered, “Nothing.”  Poe’s smugness lasted about five more seconds before he got another message: “prove it.”  This time, Poe was the one to blush, and he was relieved when they arrived at their destination before he had to reply.

When they got out of the car, though, Ben groaned.  His father was already going inside the shop when Ben grabbed Poe’s arm and held him back.

“That’s Hux’s car,” he hissed in Poe’s ear, then pointed toward a silver, two-door sports car parked a few spots away.

“Are you sure?” Poe asked, and Ben nodded.  Poe shrugged and went on, “Well, nothing we can do about it.  Come on.”  Ben grumbled about it, but he followed Poe inside.

Ben had been right about the car: Hux was the only other customer in the little shop, impeccably dressed as always and talking to a saleswoman in the middle of the sales floor.  She was an older woman with very short grey hair and glasses—not exactly what Poe had expected to be selling menswear, but she looked up and smiled politely when Poe and the Solos came in.

“Can I help you?” the woman asked.  She glanced at Ben and Poe and added, “Let me guess—it’s prom time for you boys, too?”  Ben looked away and scowled, and Poe stifled a sigh.  _Is he **always** going to be like this when we’re out in public?_ he wondered.  _I won’t be able to take him anywhere if he doesn’t start behaving himself!_

“Yes, ma’am,” Poe answered for them both.

“In fact, we all go to the same school,” added Hux, shooting Poe and Ben a smirk when the saleswoman wasn’t looking at him.  “Kylo, you brought your father along?”

“Shut up, Hux,” Ben growled at him, his cheeks flushing at the same time.  Ben’s dad ignored him and nodded at the other boy.

“Hello, Hux.”

“Hello, sir,” Hux said, smirking just a little bit more.

“Well, if this young man doesn’t mind,” the saleswoman said with a gesture at Hux, “I can show all three of you what we have at the same time.  That way, you won’t have to wait quite so long.”

“I don’t mind at all,” Hux all but purred.  Poe didn’t like the way he said it, but it wasn’t like he could really refuse without inconveniencing Ben’s father.  He looked at Ben, who shrugged and then, with a supreme effort, gave Poe a little smile.  Poe silently took back everything he’d thought about being ashamed of Ben as he smiled back.

“I’ll just be over here then,” Mr. Solo muttered as he trudged over to a chair against the wall and sat.

“So,” the saleswoman said to the three boys, “we’ll start by choosing colors—most young men want to match their accessories to their dates’ dresses.”  She turned to Hux and asked, “What about you?  What color is your date wearing?”

“Royal blue,” he announced.

“Excellent,” she nodded.  “That should be simple to match.  And your date?” she continued, looking at Ben.

Poe had always heard of people freezing “like a deer in headlights,” but he’d assumed it was an exaggeration.  However, that was exactly what Ben did, his brown eyes going wide as he stared at the woman.  Hux’s smirk grew a little.

“Yeah, what color _is_ your date’s _dress_ , Kylo?” he goaded the other boy.  “I haven’t heard.”

Ben’s wide eyes narrowed into a glare which he aimed at Hux, and Poe cringed.  _We should have talked about colors before,_ he thought.  _Then we could at least pretend that—_

“ _He’s_ my date,” Ben said.  He reached back and put his arm around Poe’s waist and tugged him a little closer to his side.  Poe looked up at him, then realized his mouth was hanging over and shut it quickly.  Ben was still blushing, but he glanced down at Poe with that same little smile.

Poe’s mouth almost fell open again when the saleswoman said, “Even better!  You two have more freedom in choosing what you want to wear, in that case.  So what colors do you like?”

“Um. . . .”  Poe swallowed, noted a rather sulky look on Hux’s face, and relaxed a little.  “Well, _he_ never wears anything but black,” he said, elbowing Ben, “but maybe we can add a _little_ color?”

“I _guess_ ,” Ben said in a mock moan.  “Uh. . . maybe. . . red?  Like, not a bright red, but a dark one would be okay.  If. . . if you’d like that, Poe.”

“Yeah, I would.  I think that’d be perfect,” Poe murmured.  He finally managed to tear his gaze away from Ben to look at the saleswoman with a shy smile.  “Yeah.  Dark red.”

“All right, we should have plenty of options for you, then.”  The saleswoman smiled at them and Hux, then told them, “I’ll be right back, boys, with some examples for you to look at.”

As she disappeared into the back of the shop, Poe glanced back at Mr. Solo.  He had a rather bemused look on his face, but he gave Poe a little, “we’re all bros here” nod.  Poe grinned and looked at Hux instead.

“So Nebula’s wearing blue?” Poe asked the redhead, hoping some conversation could diffuse a potential fight.  “That should look good on her.”  He didn’t like Nebula very much, but she _was_ pretty, with white-blonde hair cropped close to her head and large, dark eyes.

“ _I_ think so,” Hux replied loftily.

Ben eyed him, then asked, “What happened with Phasma?”  Poe was amazed to see Hux grimace—just a little, and he regulated his expression almost immediately, but it was enough to make Poe realize Hux was lying when he answered.

“We decided we see too much of each other.”

“And she doesn’t mind you going out with her friend?” Ben persisted.  Hux folded his arms and scowled at the taller boy.

“Why should she?  Phasma wasn’t ever my _girlfriend_ , and even if she was, I can date whoever I want,” Hux snapped, then jerked his head in Poe’s direction.  “What about _you?_   The other two-thirds of your little threesome don’t mind _you_ dating _him_?”  Poe’s face got hot, knowing that Ben’s dad could probably overhear.

“Rey and Finn are my _friends_ ,” Poe retorted in as calm a voice as he could manage, “and they’re happy because _I’m_ happy.”  He pressed a little closer to Ben and glanced up at his boyfriend as he added, “I’m _really_ happy.”

Ben leaned down and whispered to him, “So am I.”  When he kissed Poe’s temple, Poe felt like his heart literally melted—not just because the gesture was sweet, but also because Ben had made it in front of both his father and Hux.  Hux glowered at them, but the saleswoman came sweeping back into the room laden with clothing before he could say anything else.

Hux didn’t take up much of her time; he chose a solid blue vest and tie that would match Nebula’s dress, then stood still while the saleswoman took his measurements for a black suit.  Poe was relieved when she had all the information she needed, and Hux left the shop after putting the rental deposit on his parents’ credit card.  He gave Poe and Ben a resentful look on his way out.

“Now, what about you two?” the saleswoman asked.  “If I had to guess, I’d wager you _don’t_ want to tuxedos that are just alike.”

Poe chuckled, “No ma’am, I don’t think we could ever manage to look much alike no matter what we were wearing.”

“So you like black,” she mused, eyeing Ben, who shifted uncomfortably under her gaze.  “How about just a red shirt for you, then, with everything else black—tie, vest, jacket?”

“Er. . . .”  Ben looked from her to Poe, and even glanced back at his father, who was watching the procedures with an amused expression.  “I. . . I guess?  I don’t know anything about clothes,” he muttered.

“And you look a bit more traditional,” the saleswoman said to Poe, which made him smile again.  “So I’m thinking. . . white shirt, red vest and tie, black jacket.”  Looking him up and down, she added, “Maybe something slim-fitting so you don’t get swallowed up.”

“I’d like that,” Ben murmured, looking Poe over as well.  “He has really nice legs.”

“ _Ben!_ ” Poe hissed, his face flaring with heat again, and he heard Ben’s father make a choked coughing noise behind them.

“Well, I’m not here to judge, only to measure,” the saleswoman quipped.  She did just that, and although Ben found it tedious, it didn’t really take that long.  Mr. Solo paid Ben’s deposit, and Ben looked a little embarrassed about it when Poe paid for his own, in cash no less.  His mother had actually loaned him the money, and Poe had insisted he would pay her back that summer, once he got a job.  When they were through, the saleswoman told them they could try on their rentals the Wednesday before prom. . . a date that wasn’t really that far away anymore.  That thought made Poe a little nervous as they left the shop and climbed back into the giant SUV.

“So I guess you and Hux aren’t friends anymore, Ben,” Mr. Solo commented as he drove them to the steakhouse where they were having dinner.

“Hux is a dick,” Ben muttered.

“ _Ben,_ ” his fathered groaned.

“A _jerk_.  Can I say he’s a jerk?”  Ben slouched down in his seat, easier for him to do than Poe since Ben wasn’t wearing his seatbelt.  “So _no_ , we’re not friends.”  He glanced out the window, then mumbled, “He was. . . teasing me about liking Poe.  So I got fed up with him.”

“Good,” said his father.  “I never liked him anyway.”  Poe chuckled, and Ben gave his dad a surprised look through the rearview mirror as Mr. Solo went on, “He was always polite to us grown-ups and all, but he’s got that sneaky look about him.  I wouldn’t trust that kid.”

“I wouldn’t either,” Poe declared with a grin.

Despite Ben’s grumbling in the car, he was in a better mood at dinner, where he sat next to Poe in a booth with his father opposite them.  Ben even grabbed Poe’s hand and held it while they were waiting on their food; Poe reciprocated by rubbing his leg up against his boyfriend’s later as they ate.  When he snuck a glance at Ben, the taller boy was blushing, and Poe felt him squirm slightly from time to time.  Poe liked that, and it made him all the more excited about going home with Ben after dinner. . . but his meal was also _really_ good, so he tried not to eat too fast either.  He was surprised when Mr. Solo insisted on paying for his dinner.  Poe had brought enough money to pay for himself, not wanting to make any assumptions about what “going out to dinner” meant, but he was grateful all the same.

“Thanks, Mr. Solo.  For everything else too. . . taking us to get fitted and all,” Poe told Ben’s father, a bit shyly.

Ben glanced at Poe, then muttered, “Yeah. . . thanks, Dad.  I. . . I appreciate it.”  Mr. Solo looked as startled as Poe felt; then his mouth twitched as he tried to hide a smile.

“No problem.”  His attempt at being casual failed when he added to Poe, “You’re a nice kid, Poe.  Leia—Ben’s mother and I are glad he’s dating you.”

“Dad.  _Shut.  Up,_ ” Ben growled.  “You’re so _embarrassing_.  Are you finished yet?” he muttered at Poe.  “I wanna go home.”

Poe rolled his eyes.  “What, am I embarrassing you too?”

“Nooo.”  Ben leaned over and whispered, “I want to get you alone, rooster.”  Poe blushed and earned himself a curious look from Ben’s dad.

“Y-yeah,” he told Ben, “I’m finished.”

\--

To be continued


	15. Chapter 15

Ben had hoped to get Poe up to his room without interference, but his mom was waiting on them in the kitchen when they got home.  She gave Poe a warm smile, then one tinged with a bit of suspicion to her son and husband.

“Hello, Poe,” she said with a nod.

“Hi,” he mumbled with a shy smile of his own.

“How did it go?” Leia asked Ben’s father, who shrugged.

“Pretty good.  We—”

“Pretty _well_ ,” Leia corrected, making Ben smirk as he thought, _At least she doesn’t just do that to me._

Han groaned, “Pretty _well_.  They seem to be satisfied, anyway.”  He gestured at the boys, and Poe nodded.

“Yes, ma’am, we got red stuff.  I think it’ll look nice!”

“I’m sure you’ll both look very handsome,” Leia told him, and Ben cringed.  Poe looked pleased though, so Ben decided to let the embarrassing comment pass.

“We’re going upstairs,” he growled to his mother, then looked at Poe, trying to think of what he should do to be polite.  “Uh, you want something to drink first?  Like a soda or something?”

“Um, sure.”  Poe smiled at him, and Ben felt like his insides melted.  _He’s so cute. . . and he’s here, at my house, and we’re about to go upstairs **alone**. . . ._   Ben forced those thoughts aside and went to the refrigerator to get their drinks.

“Poe, what time is your curfew?” Leia asked, making Ben cringe all over again.  _Here we go,_ he thought, _she’s going to rub it in that mine’s so early._   But to his surprise, when Poe told her midnight, she said, “Well, you can stay until you need to go home.”

“Yes, ma’am!” Poe said with enthusiasm.  He took the can of Coke Ben handed him; then Ben glanced over at his mother.

“Uh, thanks,” he muttered before taking Poe’s arm and tugging him toward the door that would lead to the stairs, wanting to escape.  He didn’t like feeling indebted to his parents, but on the other hand, he felt obligated to thank them too.  They _were_ being pretty cool about the whole. . . Poe thing.  For them, anyway.

Ben took Poe’s hand once they were out of his parents’ sight.  Poe squeezed Ben’s fingers as he looked at the ornately-framed pictures lining the hall and stairway.

“Your house is huge!” Poe breathed.  “And fancy.  A lot fancier than mine.”

“I’m glad it’s big so I’m not stuck being around my parents,” Ben muttered, even though Poe’s marveling made him uncomfortable.  He started up the stairs with the smaller boy following him.  “But your house is fine.  I like it.”

“It might be nice to be able to hide from B.B. sometimes,” Poe admitted.  “But I guess I’m just lucky I have my own room!”  He stopped at the top of the stairs and looked at the two doors, at right angles to each other, on the landing.  “Which one’s your room?”

“Uh, this is my bedroom.”  Ben gestured at the one directly across from the top of the stairs.  “But my TV and stuff’s in the other room.”

Poe stared at him.  “You have _two_ rooms?”

Ben felt his face heat up, and he grumbled, “Dude, it’s a big house, and I’m an only child, okay?”  He stalked past Poe to his bedroom door and opened it, turning on the light and taking a quick look around to be sure his parents hadn’t been in there.  Not that they’d ever shown any interest in messing with his stuff, or that he had much contraband to hide beside his makeup, but still, it was the principle of the thing.  All seemed to be in place though.  He set his soda down on the dresser and made a half-hearted attempt to pull the sheets up on his unmade bed, just to have something to do.  Now that he and Poe were actually alone, Ben felt all awkward again.  Poe had followed him to the doorway, where he stood looking in.

“Um, I’m sorry if that was rude,” Poe mumbled.  “I didn’t mean to make you mad.”  Ben looked over at him and felt bad when he saw how worried his boyfriend looked.  Every bit of irritation he was feeling toward Poe evaporated.

“I’m not mad,” Ben reassured him.  “Just. . . this is kind of weird, you know?  You being here, and my parents, and. . . I sorta don’t know how to act.”

“Yeah.  I feel the same way.”  Poe tried another smile, this one both tentative and hopeful.  He looked so cute, it made Ben squirm.

“Get in here,” he said with a grin.  “And lock the door.  The other room’s connected through the bathroom, so we don’t have to go out in the hall again.”

“Okay.”  Poe came in and locked the door behind him, then took a long swallow of his drink before setting it down next to Ben’s, with a frown.  “These are gonna leave rings on your furniture.”

“Okay, _Mom_ ,” Ben teased, even as he went over to Poe and wrapped his arms around the smaller boy from behind.

“Sorry,” Poe said again, but he laughed when Ben gave him a kiss on the side of his neck.

“Don’t apologize, rooster.  You’re cute.”  He hugged Poe tighter and nuzzled his neck and shoulder.  “Mmm, and you smell good.”

“I probably smell like steak,” Poe chuckled as he turned in Ben’s arms to hug him back; then he tilted his pretty face up to look at Ben.  “Kiss me, _please_?  I’ve been going crazy having to behave myself all day.”

Ben was more than happy to oblige.  He bent his head to kiss Poe, tasting the sugar from his drink on his lips then in his mouth.  Poe kissed him back hard, wrapping his arms around Ben’s shoulders and rubbing his little body up against him.  Ben dropped his hands to Poe’s ass and squeezed it, making Poe simultaneously giggle and moan into his mouth.  Walking backwards, Ben pulled Poe over to the bed behind him and sat down with Poe straddling his lap.  Poe squirmed as Ben kept groping him; then he finally broke the kiss off and sat back a little to catch his breath.

“Ben, you’re so hot,” Poe panted as he wiped the spit off his mouth with the back of his hand.  “I think I could kiss you _forever_.”

Ben nuzzled his neck again and whispered, “And I could feel up your tight little ass forever, baby.”

“Oh _God_ , Ben!”  Poe blushed all the way down to his shoulders.  “You’re _awful_.  No one’s ever talked to me like that before.”

“Good.  I want you all to myself.”  Ben lifted his head so he could look into Poe’s dark eyes, half covered by his lids and long lashes.  “Poe. . . um, today was. . . really special.  I’m sorry I was kind of a jerk, but I really liked—well, showing you off.”  He grinned a little when he saw how Poe’s eyes lit up.  “Especially telling that lady you’re my date.  In front of Hux.”

“Heh, I liked that too.  And you weren’t a jerk—not too much, anyway.”  Poe leaned forward to kiss the end of Ben’s nose, then rest his forehead against the larger boy’s.  “Hux deserved it, and you did tell your dad thank you, so it’s okay.  And your mom’s right—we’re gonna look good in our tuxes.”

“ _You_ are, anyway,” Ben muttered, but Poe made a little growling noise.

“Just stop it, okay?  I think you’re hot—heck, I think you’re _gorgeous_.”  Poe’s voice dropped to a whisper.  “Ben, I like everything about you.  Your beautiful brown eyes when you look at me—even back when you used to glare at me all the time, I still liked it, just because you were looking at me.  And I like feeling your mouth on my skin, and your hands on my—”  He flushed again as he mumbled, “—my ass, and—well, the rest of me.  And your long legs, and your chest, and your hair, and _everything_.”

“Okay,” Ben conceded in a matching whisper, “we’re both gonna look good.  Because I like everything about you too.   Everyone’s gonna be jealous of us, right?”  He smiled as he said it, not exactly meaning it but knowing Poe would like hearing it.

“Yeah,” Poe smiled back.  “Hey, are we getting flowers?  Like. . . whatever they’re called.  Corsages, but what guys wear.”  Ben hadn’t thought about it before, but he nodded.

“Boutonnieres.  And yeah, I’ll buy them.”  Ben turned his head to kiss Poe’s cheek, then murmured against his skin, “Red?”  
  
“Y-yeah. . . .”  Poe shivered at the feeling of Ben’s mouth on his skin.

“You like roses?”

“Yeah.  You’d—you’d get me a rose?” Poe breathed.

“Sure.”  Ben trailed more kisses up along his temple.  “My sexy little boyfriend deserves the most beautiful flower.”

“Oh geez,” Poe groaned, but from the way he hugged Ben tighter, Ben figured he secretly liked hearing sappy romantic stuff.

“You still want to paint my nails?” Ben asked before he got too wrapped up in kissing again.  “We’ve got a few hours, but they’ll take a little while to dry.”

“Yeah!”  Poe planted a kiss on his forehead then scrambled out of his lap.  “I want to see the rest of your room—or rooms, too.”  Ben got up and retrieved their drinks before gesturing toward the bathroom door.

“Polish is in there.  We can do it in the other room—I’ll put on a DVD or something while they’re drying.”

“Okay,” Poe said as he looked at the band posters plastering Ben’s walls.  “I kinda thought you’d have painted your room black or something.”

“I tried,” Ben muttered.  “Mom wouldn’t let me.  My sheets are black though,” he added with a triumphant smirk.

“I noticed.”  Poe smirked right back at him.  “And you were right—your bed’s plenty big enough for me.  Am I ever gonna get to see those sheets up close?”  Ben felt himself blush.

“If we can convince our parents to let you spend the night,” he mumbled.  “I’d. . . I’d really like that, but I don’t know if they’d let us do it.”

“Yeah.”  Poe gave a slightly wistful sigh; then he wandered into the bathroom.  He seemed as amazed by the size of it as he was by the rest of the house, and Ben tried to distract him by opening the vanity drawer where he had his nail polish.

“What color do you want me to use?” Ben asked.  Poe stood beside him and peered in.  All the shades were dark, but Ben had a few different colors and finishes.  Poe stuck his small hand on the drawer and rattled around.

“I dunno, I actually like the solid black.  It’s pretty hot.  Hey, what’s this?” he added as he pulled out Ben’s eyeliner.

“Oh.  Um.”  Ben swallowed hard.  “Liquid eyeliner.”

“Whoa, cool!”  Poe glanced at his face and pursed his lips.  “You don’t ever wear it though.”

“Yeah, no.  I, uh. . . I’m kind of scared to.  My parents would freak out, and I. . . didn’t know what you’d think.”

“I think it would be really, _really_ sexy,” Poe proclaimed, then grinned at the surprised look Ben gave him.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”  Poe held the tube out.  “Here.  Put it on, I wanna see!”

“Christ, Poe,” sighed Ben, “you’re so demanding.  I dunno.”

“Pleeease?”  Poe pursed his lips again, making Ben stare at his mouth and think about the benefits of looking “really, really sexy.”

“Okay, _fine,_ ” he finally conceded.  “But I’m not wearing it out in public anywhere.”  He took the eyeliner, then plucked his black nail polish out of the drawer, along with a can of drying spray.  After setting them aside, he pulled the top off the eyeliner and looked down at it with a little frown, hoping he wasn’t about to make a mistake.  What if Poe thought he looked weird once he had it on?

“Do you know how to use it?” Poe asked.

“Yes, of course I do.”  Ben cast a sideways look at him.  “It’s not like I’ve never practiced or anything.  And it’s not that hard.”  He leaned over the vanity, blinked both eyes, then started carefully to outline them.  Poe watched, fascinated, which didn’t make it any easier.  Still, Ben managed to get it on without his hand shaking too much.  He tried not to overdo it, aiming more for a tasteful k-pop look than Captain Jack Sparrow, but he still thought he put on a little too much.  Nevertheless, when he turned nervously to Poe, his boyfriend seemed slightly breathless.

“Oh wow,” murmured Poe, “you look beautiful.”  He reached up a hand and touched Ben’s cheek, still staring at his eyes in admiration.  “Um. . . I know what you said about not wearing it in public, but. . . do you think maybe you could wear it to the prom?”

“Geez, Poe, I dunno.”  Ben looked at himself in the mirror again.  He _did_ like how he looked, but wearing it to the prom, where everyone could see him. . . .  “I’ll think about it.  But you really like it, rooster?”

“Yeah.  I really like it.”  Poe gently turned Ben’s face toward him, then leaned up to kiss him.  “Will you leave it on for the rest of the night?”

“Yeah.”  Ben looked at Poe thoughtfully.  “You might look pretty in it too.  And lip gloss.”  Poe turned absolutely scarlet and scowled.

“I am _not_ wearing lipstick.”

“ _Gloss_.  There’s a difference.  Gloss is shinier, and see-through,” Ben pointed out, but Poe just shook his head.

“How come you know so much about makeup, anyway?” he teased.  “C’mon, I want to get started on your nails so they’ll get dry faster.  I haven’t forgotten what you said you’d do once they’re done.”

“Neither have I,” Ben muttered, blushing a little himself.  In fact, he’d thought more about it than he was willing to admit.  He took the nail polish and spray into the other bedroom, where he had his TV and Xbox.  The room was smaller than the one he slept in, but it was still plenty big enough for his electronics and a couch on the opposite wall.

“This is so cool,” Poe breathed.  “I should come over more often!”

“Any time you want to, baby,” Ben murmured as he crouched down by the TV and shuffled through the DVD cases leaning against the wall beside it.  Poe knelt behind him and leaned against his back, rubbing his cheek against Ben’s long hair.

“What’re we gonna watch?” he asked.

“What do you feel like?” Ben asked.  “A lot of these are concert videos, but—nngh, _Poe!_ ”  He broke off with a choked moan when he felt both of Poe’s small hands grabbing his ass.  Poe laughed and didn’t let go; he just squeezed harder.

“You kept talking about how much you like feeling me up, so I wanted to see what the big deal is,” Poe declared as he groped Ben, who had started to squirm.  “I didn’t know you were this muscular _here_ too.”

“Ugh, Poe,” Ben groaned.  He was getting turned on by the feel of Poe’s hands on him; in fact, he was surprised by how _much_ it was turning him on to have his ass groped, like a girl.

“See, stork, I can be as bad as you can,” Poe whispered, leaning up against his back to reach his ear.  He slipped his hand between Ben’s legs from behind, making Ben gasp.

“Nngh, Poe, stop,” Ben panted, “ _please_.  Unless you want to skip the nail polish, because I’m not gonna be able to wait if you keep doing that.”  Poe sighed and gave him one more light squeeze before drawing back.

“Okay, okay.  But hurry up and find something to watch—a concert is fine.”

Ben finally stuck a DVD in the player and crawled over to sit on the floor by Poe with the nail polish.  He shook the bottle, then handed it to Poe.

“After you paint them, spray them with this stuff,” he added, pointing to the spray can.  “It dries them faster.”

“Okay.”  Poe unscrewed the bottle, then looked down at Ben’s right hand, which Ben had propped up on his knee to keep it steady.  Poe mumbled, “I don’t know how to do this.  I’m afraid I’m gonna mess ‘em up.”

“If you do, we’ll take it off and start over,” Ben reassured him.  “It’s just like painting anything else, only small.  Pretend you’re painting the prom scenery.  Only tiny.”  Poe smiled at that and finally began dabbing the black polish on Ben’s long nails.

“Your hands are so nice,” Poe sighed as he worked.  He kept getting polish on Ben’s cuticles, but Ben didn’t really care—he could pick the dry polish off his skin later, and anyway, it was worth it to be the focus of Poe’s attention, and to feel Poe’s warm hand over his when the smaller boy held it.

“Yours are too,” Ben pointed out.  “So small and perfect.”

“Really?”  Poe glanced up at him, then back at his work.  “My fingers are kind of short.  I like yours, how long they are.”

Ben chuckled, “It’s a curse sometimes, when I try to handle really small things.  I used to try to make models when I was a kid, and I always ended up breaking all the pieces and gluing my fingers together, stuff like that.”

Poe laughed too, but then he said, “I like them anyway.  I bet you’d be good at playing an instrument, like. . . guitar, or piano or something.”  He had finished with Ben’s right hand and motioned for him to replace it with his left.  “And at. . . other stuff.”  Poe’s tan cheeks reddened as his voice dropped to a mumble, and Ben gave him a curious look.

“What other stuff?”

“Nothing,” Poe muttered.  Ben thought about pursuing that line of questioning further, but Poe changed the subject before he could say anything else.  “I can’t believe it’s so close to the prom already.  I’m excited—are you?”  When he glanced up again, Ben nodded.

“Yeah.  I always thought prom would suck, and I’d hate it, but. . . I never thought I’d be going with you,” Ben admitted.  “I’ll be sorry when it’s all over.”

“Me too, but it’ll just be the beginning,” Poe proclaimed.

When Ben asked, “The beginning of what?” Poe looked up at him again, sticking the brush back in the polish bottle as he paused in his painting.  Poe bit his lip for a second.

“Um. . . us.  I mean. . . I dunno, maybe it’s a dumb thing to say.”  He dropped his dark eyes and started painting again.

“No, I don’t think it’s dumb,” Ben promised.  “I just didn’t know what you meant.”  He _still_ didn’t know but didn’t want to admit it, since Poe looked kind of hurt.

“I meant, it’s like. . . right now everything’s about the prom.  But afterwards, when we see each other, we won’t have to think about anything but—each other.”  Poe finished with the last nail and screwed the cap back on the nail polish, then suddenly lifted his head to give Ben a plaintive look.  “Ben, we’re going to stay together afterwards, aren’t we?  I mean, you’ll still want to be my boyfriend?”

“Of course I will, baby,” Ben breathed.  He started to reach for Poe without thinking until he remembered his wet nails; then he leaned forward with his hands held awkwardly out to the sides to kiss Poe as best he could.  “Poe, sweetheart, you didn’t think I was just—using you to have a prom date, did you?”

“N-no, I just. . . .”  Poe smiled at him weakly, relief plain in his eyes.  “You sounded surprised, so I just wanted to be sure.  Ben, you—you mean so much to me.  It’d kill me if I lost you.”

“Poe. . . .”  Ben felt stupidly close to tears, he was so touched.  “Baby, yes, we’re gonna stay together.  And you’re right, it’s just the beginning.  We’ll have the whole summer together, and no having to get up for school in the morning.”  Finally, Poe gave him a full smile and reached for the nail spray.

“I’ve already got a summer job lined up,” he admitted as he misted each nail with the freezing spray.  A lacy pattern of ice crystals formed over the black polish for a few seconds before melting away.  “But it’s only three days a week, during the day, and it’s at the movie theater, and they’ll let me into movies for free— _with_ a date,” he added with a grin.  “So we can go out a lot.  Are you getting a job?”

“Uh, no,” Ben muttered, feeling embarrassed and rather spoiled.  “But. . . Mom keeps bugging me about taking a couple classes at the community college, intro English and history, that kind of thing, so I’ll have a head start.  I guess I’m going to do that.”

“You should,” Poe told him.  “You’re so smart, it’ll be easy for you.”

“I’m not looking forward to doing homework all summer though,” Ben grumbled.  “Maybe I can get by without doing too much.”

“Oh no you _won’t_.  You’re not going to half-ass your first college classes _ever_!” Poe informed him.  “I’ll make you do all your work.”

“You will, hunh?”  Ben grinned at him, indulging a brief fantasy of Poe withholding his. . . favors until Ben finished his work, as well as the reward he might get afterwards.  Poe gave him that cocky little smirk Ben loved, then took both of the larger boy’s hands in his.

“There, all done.  I kind of messed up in a couple places, but. . . they still look nice.”  Poe kissed the back of each hand; then Ben turned them over to hold Poe’s chin so he could kiss the smaller boy.

“Thanks, baby,” Ben murmured.  “You did a good job.  I’ll put you in charge of painting them for the prom, too.”

“Okay!”  Poe returned his kiss, then got up and stretched before sitting down again on the couch.  “So how long until they’re dry?”  Ben looked up at him a moment, entranced by Poe’s mischievous grin, before he shook himself out of the daze and went to change out DVDs—very carefully, so he wouldn’t smudge the polish.

“Give it twenty minutes or so, just to be sure,” he said over his shoulder.  “The spray dries them pretty well, but they can still get messed up if something presses on them.”  He joined Poe on the couch, putting an arm around his boyfriend’s shoulders and hugging Poe to his side with his fingers carefully splayed.  Poe snuggled in close, head on Ben’s shoulder, while they waited.

\--

To be continued


	16. Chapter 16

Poe had never realized he could be as happy as he felt cuddled against Ben’s side, glancing up from time to time to see the liner around his boyfriend’s eyes.  He rested his head on Ben’s shoulder to watch more of whatever weird band was playing on the DVD.  _I don’t think I’ll ever understand his taste in music,_ Poe thought, _but I could sit through just about anything to be here with him._

But after a little while, Ben gently lifted Poe off his shoulder and got up.  Poe watched, disappointed, as he went to the closed door of the room.

“Something wrong?” Poe asked, while Ben locked the door.

“No.  Uh. . . my polish is dry,” Ben muttered, then gave Poe a sideways glance with his head bent, through his hair. . . just the kind of look that always made Poe’s heart race.

“Oh,” Poe gulped.  “O-okay.”

“I’m gonna leave the TV on,” Ben went on, “and, um. . . get a towel.  Since last time—you know. . . .”

“Y-yeah.”  Poe thought he must be blushing over every inch of his body, and he fidgeted on the couch while Ben went into the bathroom.  He felt a lot less sexy and a lot _more_ nervous than he had thought he would, especially when Ben came back and sat down beside him, after turning off the light so that they were illuminated only by the TV screen.  They looked at each other at the same time, then, at the same time, started laughing.

“C’mere,” Ben chuckled, pulling Poe into his arms and dotting kisses all over his face.  “Mmm. . . can I take your shirt off?”

“Yeah, if I can take _yours_ off,” Poe challenged.

“Fine,” Ben sighed.  He leaned back so they could strip each other of their shirts, then drew Poe close again to kiss him hard.  Poe rubbed his bare chest against Ben’s and shivered as he felt his boyfriend’s hands sliding up and down along his back.  After they’d kissed a few minutes, Poe pushed Ben back to lean in the corner between the arm and back of the couch and ran his hands over Ben’s chest.

“Your skin is so smooth,” Poe marveled.  “It’s beautiful.”

Ben countered, “I like yours better.  At least _you_ have some hair on your chest.  I feel like a girl.”  He smirked slightly as he spanned Poe’s narrower chest with both hands, squeezing his pectorals a little.

“Well, you’re more built than I am.  I need to start working out, or I’m not gonna be able to keep up with you.”  Poe flicked his thumbs over Ben’s nipples, making the larger boy gasp.

“A-ah. . . k-keep up with me how?”

“ _You_ know.”  Poe grinned at the way Ben’s eyes widened.  “Although, I guess maybe cardio would be better for stamina than strength training, right?”

“Stamina for _what_?  Jerking me off?”  Now Ben was the one grinning over how he’d made Poe blush.  “Because for that, you’d better build up your lower arm strength.”

Despite the heat rising in his face, Poe managed to mutter, “Not just for that.  I mean, eventually we’re gonna. . . .”

“Gonna what, rooster?” Ben breathed.  He’d started rubbing Poe’s chest again, circling the smaller boy’s nipples with his thumbs.  Poe squirmed and tried to hold back a whimper; he hadn’t realized how good that could feel, even when he’d done it to Ben.  When Ben pinched his stiff nipples gently between each thumb and forefinger, Poe _did_ whimper, and he felt himself coming fully erect.

“Nngh, we’re gonna have sex, right?” he finally mumbled.  Even though Ben probably knew that’s what Poe had been implying, his cheeks darkened.

“Do. . . you want to?” asked Ben, his voice falling to nearly a whisper.  “I mean, not _now_ , not tonight.  But. . . someday?”

“Yeah,” Poe admitted in a smaller voice than he’d intended to.  “Do. . . do _you_ want to?  With me?”  Ben stared at him, chest rising and falling as he breathed hard, and Poe almost thought that was a _no_ before Ben nearly growled the answer.

“Yeah.  Yeah, I want to fuck you, Poe.  I want it _bad_.”

“Oh,” was all Poe could say, although he broke into what he knew was a stupid grin.

“But I really do want to wait,” Ben went on in a murmur as he lifted a hand from Poe’s chest to touch the side of his face.  “I want it to be. . . right, you know?”

“Yeah.”  Poe’s grin softened into a smile, and he turned his head to kiss Ben’s palm.  “Me too.  Even though you’ve got me really hard right now.”

“Yeah?”  Ben smirked and dropped his other hand to rub the front of Poe’s jeans.  “Want me to do something about it?”  Poe nodded and pushed his hips forward against Ben’s hand, and Ben squeezed him a little.  “Damn, baby, you _are_ hard.  Turn around and lean up against me,” he instructed.

Poe wasn’t sure what Ben had in mind, but he shifted to sit between Ben’s spread legs and leaned back against his chest.  Ben put his arms around Poe’s torso and bent his head to kiss the smaller boy’s neck and shoulder.  Poe shivered with pleasure and rested the back of his head against Ben’s shoulder.

“That feels good,” he murmured.

“Mmn.”  Ben hugged him, then slid his hands down Poe’s stomach to his waist.  “Um, can I pull your jeans down?  I know you wanted to watch me do this. . . .”  Poe blushed but nodded.

“Y-yeah.  Go ahead.”

Ben fumbled with the button and zipper of Poe’s jeans—the time it took him to get them open only increased Poe’s nervousness—then slid his fingers down below the waistband to push them down a little.  After Poe rocked his hips up so Ben could get his pants down past his hips, Ben brushed his hand over the tented front of Poe’s boxers.

When Ben muttered, “You’re _sure?_ ” Poe gave an impatient moan.

“ _Yes_ , Ben, touch me, please!”

He heard and felt Ben draw in his breath before he grasped Poe’s shorts and tugged them down too.  Poe closed his eyes for a second, a little embarrassed over Ben seeing him like that, but he opened them again when he felt Ben’s hand.  Poe looked down to see Ben’s fingers wrap around his erection and begin to stroke him, slowly.

“Fuck, Poe,” Ben said in a hoarse whisper, close to his ear as he looked over Poe’s shoulder.  “You’re so fucking _hot_.”  All Poe could do was groan as he watched Ben’s hand move.  Ben’s long, pale fingers, tipped with the sleek black polish, looked even sexier on Poe than in his fantasies, and he started to push up into Ben’s fist with quick little thrusts.  Ben caught his breath then kept whispering to him.

“Yeah, you like that, don’t you?  You like how I jerk you off. . . .”

“Unh hunh,” Poe moaned, simultaneously more embarrassed and more turned-on by what Ben was saying.  He wanted Ben to stroke him faster, but when he tried to thrust up more quickly, Ben chuckled and held Poe’s hips down by laying his unoccupied arm across his waist.

“Heh, I was right about how demanding you are,” Ben hissed.  “You wanna come right now, don’t you?  But you’re gonna have to wait for it.”

“Nngh, _Ben,_ ” Poe whined, even though he loved how Ben acting dominant made him feel.  For all Ben had said before about wanting Poe to tell him what to do, he was good at being in charge himself.

“Shh, wait for it, baby.  I’m gonna take care of you.”  Ben went back to kissing and nibbling at Poe’s shoulder, and he slid his free hand up to Poe’s chest.  After a second, he put the fingers to Poe’s mouth instead, pushing two of them in.  Poe found himself sucking on them before he even knew he was going to do it, and the resulting noise from Ben made Poe feel sexy and dirty all at the same time.  After Ben pulled his wet fingers out of Poe’s mouth, he used them to rub and pinch the smaller boy’s nipples again as his other hand kept stroking.

At first, Poe felt a little guilty at getting so much pleasure without doing anything to Ben in return, but soon, he’d forgotten all about it; he couldn’t think of anything except Ben’s hands on his body and the burning heat of Ben’s chest against his back.  Ben let him start thrusting again, but slowly, and lifted his head to lick the outside of Poe’s ear before he resumed whispering.

“You’re so pretty, Poe,” Ben breathed.  “All of you, so pretty.  My hot little boyfriend. . . .”  The desire in his voice filled Poe with a sudden, fierce burst of love for him.

“Yeah, I’m yours,” groaned Poe.  Ben reached up and turned Poe’s face toward him, then kissed him with an urgency that belied the more casual movements of his hand.  Poe kissed him back, sucking hard on Ben’s tongue until Ben drew his head back with a breathless gasp.

“Say it, say you’re mine,” he whispered.

“I am, I’m yours,” Poe panted.  Ben’s eyeliner made his eyes look an even richer brown than normal, and Poe thought they were absolutely beautiful as they flicked over him.  They looked bright, too, almost as if Ben were about to cry even though his mouth was smiling.

“And I’m yours too,” Ben promised.  He tightened his grip slightly and increased the speed of his strokes, and Poe cried out and bucked his hips up to push into Ben’s fist.  Ben began kissing him again, with short but deep kisses, and dropped his free hand down to squeeze Poe’s thigh before sliding it between the smaller boy’s legs to fondle his balls.  Poe groaned into Ben’s mouth then, when their mouths broke apart, pressed his face against Ben’s neck.

“Oh God, oh God, _Ben,_ ” Poe whimpered, almost overwhelmed with the feelings both hands were giving him.  “That’s so good, that—nngh, please, don’t stop!”

“Oh, I’m not gonna stop, baby,” Ben assured him with a rather desperate laugh.  “I’m gonna get you off, I’m gonna make you come so hard. . . .”  Poe shuddered and thrust up again as Ben touched him harder and faster.  Ben kissed his temple then pressed his mouth to Poe’s ear and whispered, “You wanna come, Poe?  Want me to jerk your cock until you come?”

Poe’s answering groan of “ _Yes!_ ” was muffled by Ben’s neck, but Ben didn’t really need to hear him to know the answer.  He pumped Poe swiftly and thrust his other hand between Poe’s thighs, so deeply his middle finger came close to penetrating Poe.  That sensation pushed Poe over the edge; he tensed up then rocked his hips up hard as he started to come on his stomach, crushing his mouth against Ben’s neck to keep from making too much noise.  Ben kept working him with both hands as Poe shuddered in his arms, until Poe finally lifted his head and gasped for Ben to stop, once he got too sensitive to take any more.  Ben pulled his hands back and wrapped his arms around Poe’s chest instead, hugging him tightly and kissing his forehead and hair.  Poe collapsed back against him as his heart pounded, until he managed to catch his breath.

“Wow,” he stammered with a weak laugh.  “You’re. . . you’re good at that. _Really_ good.”  He could feel the tension in Ben’s body behind him; the larger boy even twitched slightly, like a plucked guitar string, when Poe shifted against him.

“I want to make you happy, Poe,” whispered Ben.

“You do, _amorcito_ , you make me happier than anything else,” Poe promised him.

“ _Amorcito?_ ” Ben asked as he picked up the towel he’d left on the back of the couch and rubbed it across Poe’s stomach.  “What’s that mean?”

“Oh, uh. . . .”  Poe blushed; he hadn’t realized what he’d said until then.  “I-it just means, like, ‘sweetheart,’ sort of.  My dad used to call my mom that a lot when I was really little, before he left.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say anything in Spanish before,” Ben murmured as he nuzzled Poe’s hair and pulled Poe tighter against him.

“I. . . I don’t, hardly ever.  My dad spoke it a lot more than Mom does, and so I. . . I don’t know much. . . mmn. . . .”  He trailed off while Ben caressed his neck.  At the same time, Ben gave a little thrust of his hips up against Poe’s ass, which let Poe feel just how turned on he still was.

“I like it, you calling me that, I mean.  Will you keep doing it?”

“Yeah.”  Poe sat forward and shifted on the couch to face outwards so he could look at Ben and trail a hand down over his groin, grinning.  “So.  _Amorcito._ You need some help with this?”

“Yeah,” Ben breathed.  He bit his lip when Poe started rubbing him through his pants, then muttered, “Hold on a second,” and pushed Poe’s hand away.  Poe’s breath caught when Ben unzipped his jeans.

“You’re gonna let me look at you?” Poe murmured, remembering how self-conscious Ben had been the last time Poe tried to get his pants down.

Ben said, “Yeah, I want to watch you do it.  And anyway, you let me look at _you_.”  He grinned suddenly, albeit a little nervously, as he glanced down at Poe’s pants, still around his thighs.  Poe squirmed and started to reach for them, intending to pull them up, but then Ben distracted him by lifting up his ass and tugging his own jeans down.  Poe stared, and Ben blushed.

“You don’t have to _stare_ ,” he grumbled.

“S-sorry, you’re just. . . you’re a lot bigger,” Poe gulped.  “Than I am, I mean.  _There_ , I mean.”

“I’m bigger than you everywhere else too,” Ben retorted.  When he started to look uncomfortable, Poe gave a shaky laugh and leaned over to kiss him.  Ben drew back, sulking, and muttered, “Look, if you don’t want to, just say so—”

“Are you kidding?”  Poe finally reached down to brush his fingertips up the underside of Ben’s shaft.  Ben gasped and flexed involuntarily.  “Of _course_ I want to—I was just surprised, is all.”  He wrapped his hand around Ben’s erection and began to stroke him, making Ben groan.  “Is that good?”

“God yes. . . .”  Ben looked down at Poe’s fist sliding up and down, but Poe watched Ben’s face, the way his eyes—their eyeliner now smudged a little—had widened and his lips had parted.

“ _Amorcito_ ,” Poe whispered again, “ _te quiero_.”  Ben’s eyes flicked up to his for a second, questioning, but then Ben tilted his head back and closed them with a moan.  He started thrusting up into Poe’s hand, gently at first then with more force when Poe pumped him faster.  Poe wanted to draw it out, to tease Ben the way Ben had teased him, but he wasn’t sure how or what to do.  He ended up leaning forward to kiss Ben’s neck and chest, then drew his tongue over one nipple.

“Oh _fuck_ , Poe!” Ben yelped, twitching in Poe’s hand.  Poe grinned to himself and began to lick and suck at first one nipple then the other while Ben writhed against the arm of the couch.  Ben put a hand to Poe’s back then slid it down to grope his bare ass just above his jeans.  Poe had already started to get hard again, but the feeling of Ben’s hand there made him come fully erect.  He rubbed himself impatiently with one hand, but it wasn’t very satisfying.

Poe lifted his head and whined, “Ben, touch me again, _please!_ ”  Ben opened his eyes, looked up at Poe as if he was having difficulty focusing, then smirked.  Instead of putting his hand where Poe wanted it, he gripped Poe’s hip.

“Let go,” Ben whispered.  As soon as Poe complied, Ben yanked Poe’s body down and began thrusting against his abdomen.  Poe gasped and a second later was grinding on the larger boy hard.  At first he kissed Ben as they rubbed against one another, but then Poe couldn’t concentrate on anything but the feeling of ecstasy he got every time he bucked his hips into Ben’s, and he just rested his chin on Ben’s shoulder as they moved together.  Ben was gripping his ass with both hands now, helping to drive Poe forward; Poe loved the feeling so much, he wanted to do the same to Ben, and he shoved his hands under the larger boy to squeeze his ass and pull Ben up against him.

“Nngh, Poe, yeah,” Ben groaned, apparently liking it as much as Poe did.  “Fuck me, baby, fuck—me. . . !”  That gave Poe all sorts of ideas, from wondering whether this really felt anything like actual sex to considering, for the first time, that he instead of Ben might be on top when they finally did it.  But soon thoughts of anything but the present evaporated, and Poe focused only on the sounds Ben was making and how his boyfriend’s body felt under him.  Ben’s chin was hooked over Poe’s shoulder, and Poe could hear his gasps of pleasure, punctuated now and then by a groan.  Poe spread his fingers and dug the tips into Ben’s muscles as he thrust as forcefully as he could; a second later, he felt Ben tense up beneath him.

“Oh God, Poe, I’m close, I’m gonna come—!” Ben hissed.  Poe didn’t think he was anywhere near coming a second time, but he didn’t care; all that mattered to him was making Ben feel good.

“Do it, come for me,” he whispered as he rubbed himself against Ben hard.  “I wanna feel you come!”  Ben made a strained noise through clenched teeth and gave one final sharp thrust up against Poe; then Poe felt him spasming and heat spreading between them as he came.

“Poe!” Ben moaned.  He was still shuddering, and he coaxed Poe to keep going, pulling the smaller boy down against him.  “Come on me, baby!”  He slid his hands down and under Poe’s ass and gripped it hard, making Poe gasp.  After rocking his hips downward one more time, he climaxed too, trembling as Ben held him tightly.

Poe collapsed on top of Ben and breathed hard.  Ben put his arms around Poe’s back and hugged him, then stroked his hair back from his forehead.

“You’re so good,” Ben whispered to him, “so hot.  I love it when you go crazy on me like that.”

“And you’re good at _making_ me crazy,” Poe whispered back.  He raised himself up on his arms to look down at Ben’s flushed face with a smile.  “And making me feel good.”  He sat up and slid off of Ben, then grinned wider as he picked up the towel.  “ _And_ making a mess.”

“Hey, you helped,” Ben protested.  He snatched the towel and wiped himself off before sitting up shakily and rubbing it over Poe’s stomach again.  He muttered, “Good thing Mom makes me do my own laundry.”

“Ugh, don’t talk about your _mom_ ,” Poe retorted before trying to stifle a yawn.

Ben chuckled, “I wore you out, hunh?”

“I’m just sleepy,” Poe defended himself, but then he admitted, “Although you kind of did.  But I came _twice_ , remember?”

“Believe me, I’m not gonna forget.”  Ben eyed him before suggesting, “We could lie down for a while—we’ve still got a couple hours before you have to go home.”

“You mean in your bed?”  When Ben nodded, Poe grinned.  “Yeah, I’d like that.”

They took off their jeans but pulled their boxers back up just in case one of Ben’s parents should come upstairs—and, Poe suggested, so they wouldn’t be too tempted to fool around again.  Ben got in bed, sliding his long legs down between the black sheets, then looked up at Poe.

“You getting in?” Ben smirked.  Poe flushed slightly and climbed in beside him.  When Ben lay down and held up an arm, Poe snuggled close to his chest with his arm over Ben’s back.  Ben wrapped his arms around Poe and stroked his wavy hair with one hand.

“You feel so nice,” Ben murmured.  “Warm. . . .  I wish I could hold you all night.”

“Me too,” sighed Poe.  He loved everything about being in bed with his boyfriend: the way Ben and his sheets smelled, the warmth of his body, how safe Poe felt in his arms with Ben’s legs pressed against his.

Ben muttered, “I’m gonna set the alarm in case we fall asleep.  I don’t want you to get home late.”  He let go of Poe for a moment to reach for his phone on the nightstand.  After setting the clock, he tossed it aside then held Poe close again.

“If I was ever tempted to miss my curfew, it would be now.”  Poe kissed his cheek before laying his head down on Ben’s chest.  “I could stay here _forever_.”

“Poe, call me that word again,” Ben whispered.

“ _Amorcito?_ ”

“Yeah.  I like how it sounds.”  He ran his fingers through Poe’s hair again as he spoke.  “And the other thing you said— _te. . . quiero?_ ”  Poe swallowed hard.  “That means ‘I want you’?  Like in those old Taco Bell commercials?”

“Um. . . yeah,” Poe mumbled.

“Mmn.”  Ben shifted a little to kiss then nuzzle Poe’s neck.  “I think you sound pretty hot when you speak Spanish.  But it makes _me_ sound pretty boring.”

“You could call me _mi gallo_ ,” Poe chuckled.  “That means ‘my rooster.’  But really, I like ‘baby’ and plain old English ‘rooster’ just fine.”

“Okay, okay,” laughed Ben.  “I’ll stick to English.”  He yawned and rested his cheek against Poe’s hair.  He didn’t speak again, and Poe soon dozed off.  When Ben’s phone began to blare its alarm some time later, Poe awoke to Ben swearing and trying to cover Poe’s ears.

“Don’t listen to it,” he growled.  When Poe laughed and started to wriggle free of his hold, Ben grabbed him tighter and insisted, “No, I’m not gonna let you leave”; then he laughed too and covered Poe’s face with kisses.

“Believe me, I don’t wanna go,” Poe admitted, even as he finally sat up.  “Maybe someday I can spend the night for real.”

“I hope so.”  The look Ben gave him, full of both adoration and longing, made Poe’s heart ache a little.  They both got dressed and trudged downstairs, Ben motioning for Poe to be quiet when they had to pass by the door to his parents’ bedroom.

“At least they’ve already gone to bed,” Ben grumbled once they were outside.  “I really don’t want them to ask what we did all evening.”

“Yeah, I hope my mom’s already crashed too.”  Poe hugged Ben tightly then leaned up to kiss him.  Ben kissed him back and held him as Poe looked up at him.  “I guess I’ll see you Monday.”

Ben nodded.  “I think we can get the painting finished this week.  I’ll kinda miss it, at least hanging out with you after school.”

“We can still hang out,” Poe suggested.  “In the back of the gym even—we don’t have to _tell_ anyone we’re finished.”

“Devious little rooster,” Ben teased.  “And everyone thinks you’re so well-behaved.”  He bent his head to whisper in Poe’s ear, “What if they knew what you let me do to you?  And what you did to me, grinding on me like that?  You’re so _bad_.”

“Ben, _stop_.  You’re gonna get me worked up again, and I’ve gotta go,” Poe complained.

“I’ll be thinking about you all night, baby,” Ben told him and kissed him one more time before letting him go.

“I’ll be thinking about you too.”  Poe gave him a weak smile, although he was already feeling lonely.  “Night, stork.  _Amorcito_.”

Ben smiled back.  “Night, rooster.”

Poe made it home just before midnight.  His mother was in bed with the light off, but her door was open, and when Poe tried to tiptoe past, she called, “Poe, is that you?”

“Yeah.”  Poe managed to keep a sigh out of his voice, and he stuck his head in the door.  His mother sat up in bed and smiled at him.

“Did you get your suit fitted?”

Poe nodded.  “Yeah, we got sort of dark red stuff.  Vest and tie for me.”

“That sounds nice.  Did you like Ben’s father?” Lizzie asked, and Poe grinned.

“Yeah, he’s pretty funny.  He annoys Ben, but that’s kind of funny too.  But he bought me dinner,” Poe added.

“And you had a good time at Ben’s house?” she prodded, and Poe hoped should wouldn’t be able to see his blush in the dim light.

“ _Yes_ , Mom,” Poe groaned.  “We watched some DVDs.”

“Okay, I’ll end the interrogation,” she laughed at his tone of voice.  “Go to bed, it’s late.”

“Okay, night, Mom.”  Poe started to go, then added, “I love you.”

“Love you too.”  She looked at him a moment before lying back down.  “Good night, Ace.”

Poe finally made it to bed, where he lay awake for a long time, thinking about Ben.  He did feel a little guilty about what they’d done— _Maybe it really **is** bad,_ Poe fretted—but he also wanted to do it again, as soon as possible.  Remembering the way Ben’s hands had looked and felt around him and between his legs, how hard Ben had come under him. . . the way Poe had felt when he whispered “I love you” in Spanish, so Ben wouldn’t understand. . . he was convinced that he _did_ love Ben, and that being with him couldn’t possibly be wrong.

\--

To be continued


	17. Chapter 17

The last few weeks before the prom passed quickly, especially the week of, since the entire junior class got to skip their afternoon classes for those five days and spend the time decorating the gym instead.  Although he didn’t let anyone know it, Ben was secretly proud of the backdrops he and Poe had painted, and he had to work at hiding a smile and grumbling something noncommittal every time someone complimented the two boys on their work.  Poe, on the other hand, positively beamed and gushed praises for Ben’s artistic talents, swearing Ben had done most of the work.  That made Ben feel even better, but he insisted that Poe had just as much to do with the success as he did. . . except for the parts Poe couldn’t reach.  Even Phasma seemed impressed with their work Monday afternoon, when the boys had finished pushing the last panel into place.

“I thought you two would screw this up,” she commented as she looked at the last panel, which depicted a steampunk sort of futuristic scene in keeping with the t-shirt design.  “First because I thought you’d be fighting all the time, then because I thought you’d be making out all the time.”

“I guess we sort of owe you,” Poe admitted.  “If you hadn’t made us do this together, we would probably _still_ be fighting.”

“Would _not_ ,” Ben muttered, not wanting Phasma to take any of the credit for their relationship.  “We would have made up.  At some point.”

“Whatever,” Phasma interrupted.  “All I care about is that you got it _done_.  Now go help with the other decorations, there’s still a lot to do.”  As she stalked off, Ben muttered, “Bitch,” in her direction, but Poe shushed him.

“She’s just in a bad mood, I think,” Poe suggested.  “She’s been working really hard, and she’s still mad at Hux.”

“Not our problem.”  Poe just smiled at Ben’s attitude and looked around for something else for them to help with.

“Hey, let’s go fix the plants in the prehistoric section,” he suggested, grabbing Ben’s hand and tugging him off toward the front of the gym, before waiting for Ben’s agreement.  Ben sighed and trailed after his demanding little boyfriend, but he really didn’t mind.  He was getting afternoons off from class and spending time with Poe for the entire week. . . _and_ everyone else in their class got to see Poe flirting with him.  _Flirting with **me** , **him** ,_ Ben marveled as he started arranging the garish plastic “jungle” plants the decorating committee had gotten.  It was still a little hard to believe that Poe was really his.

From time to time, Ben snuck glances at Poe while they worked.  The smaller boy had changed into an old t-shirt and shorts, and Ben had difficulty keeping his eyes off Poe’s firm, tan legs, and his mind off what was _under_ those shorts.  They hadn’t repeated what they’d done at Ben’s house a couple weeks before—the few times they were alone together in private for more than a little while, Ben had gotten too nervous to suggest it—but Ben had thought about it more than he wanted to admit.

He was thinking about it _again_ , taking a break from work to lean against the wall and watch Poe talking to Rey and Finn, when Hux trudged over carrying a large plaster of Paris dinosaur.  Ben didn’t even notice him until Hux snapped at him, apparently having tried several times to get his attention.

“ _Kylo_ , wake the hell up!”

Ben turned to scowl at the other boy, muttering, “What?”

“I _said_ , where do you want this stupid thing?”  Hux glared down at the dinosaur.  “The whole time travel idea isn’t so bad, but whoever picked out the decorations has absolutely no taste.”

“Loki was in charge of that committee,” Ben shrugged, waving a hand toward a thin, green-eyed boy with black hair on the other side of the gym.  “Take it up with him.  And I don’t care where you put that god-awful dinosaur.”

Hux set it down right where he was standing, studied it, then shoved it behind a nearby fake plant with one foot.

“I don’t think Loki found this one.  He’s classier than _that_.”  Hux turned his glare from the dinosaur to Ben when he didn’t get a response.  “For God’s sake, can you quit ogling Poe long enough to carry on a conversation?”

“Well, what do you want to talk about?  You asked where to put the dinosaur, and I told you.”  Ben glared right back at the red-haired boy, who was now studying him with a mixture of disdain and puzzlement.

“I don’t know!” Hux protested.  “You just haven’t been around for _weeks_.  Ever since this whole. . . Poe thing started.”

“It’s not a _thing_ ,” Ben retorted.  “He’s my _boyfriend_.  In spite of you trying to keep that from happening.”

Hux literally threw his hands in the air as he shot back, “I don’t care if you _marry_ him.  Look, I’m sorry I’ve given you a hard time about him, I just didn’t think you were. . . you know, _serious_.  He’s so. . . everything you’re _not_.  And vice versa.”

“I know.”  Ben’s eyes flicked back to Poe, still chattering with his friends and oblivious to Ben and Hux’s discussion of him.  Ben looked at Hux again and went on, “But it’s working, and you’d better not try to fuck it up, or I’ll fuck _you_ up.”

“Christ, Kylo, I told you, I don’t _care_.”  Hux shook his head, his expression now vaguely amazed.  “You really are in love with him, aren’t you?”

Ben felt his face burn, and he had to force himself not to break eye contact with Hux as he growled, “I’m not in _love_.  I just like him.  And he’s hot, and really good at getting me off.”  He felt a bit guilty saying that last bit, like he was telling a secret without Poe’s permission, but at the same time, he wanted to brag.  The stunned look on Hux’s face, accompanied by a blush of his own, was worth it.

“TMI,” Hux muttered.  “Whatever.  It just would be nice if you spent some time with your friends too, instead of spending it all with _him_.”

“Since when were we such great friends anyway?” asked Ben; then something occurred to him.  “Wait, is all this because Phasma dumped you?  And now you don’t have anyone to hang out with?”  Hux scowled and opened his mouth to protest, but Ben cut him off.  “And is that why you’re being a dick about me and Poe—you’re jealous because I’m in a relationship and you’re not?”

“ _No,_ ” snapped Hux.  “I care even less about Phasma than I do you and Poe.  And for your information, she didn’t _dump_ me—I was never her boyfriend, and I never wanted to be.  We just decided to take other people to the prom.  That’s _all_.”

“Unh hunh.”  Hux and Phasma’s relationship didn’t especially matter to Ben, but he was enjoying the fact that Hux was upset, for once.  He went on, “Look, you should just all swap dates and be done with it.  You and Phasma go to the prom together, and let Peter take Nebula.  Peter probably doesn’t care who his date is as long as she’s hot, Nebula’s gonna bitch no matter _who_ she goes with, and you and Phasma both will be a lot happier.”

Hux narrowed his eyes and looked Ben over, suspiciously.  “What makes you say that?  What’s she said to you?”

“You mean, do I think she misses you too?”  Ben smirked.  “She’s been in an even worse mood than normal lately, so probably.”

“I do _not_ miss her, and I don’t care what kind of mood she’s in,” Hux informed Ben, his tone indicating that he probably meant exactly the opposite of what he was saying.  “You know what, forget what I said about wanting to hang out.  I just needed to tell you—I’m on the committee for planning the breakfast after the prom, and your mom told us we can have it at _your_ house.”

“ _What?_ ”  Ben stared at him.  “No, no fucking _way_.  I do _not_ want everyone coming over to my house, and I sure as _hell_ don’t want my _parents_ —”

“Too late,” Hux announced with a superior smile—he had, after all, just gotten Ben back for all his jabs about Phasma.  “Principal Organa is _thrilled_ we asked.  And anyway, your house is big, and your parents are loaded.  It just makes sense.”

“Fine,” Ben grumbled.  He didn’t want to give Hux the satisfaction of protesting further, and anyway, there wasn’t much Ben could do about it.

He got more bad news on Wednesday afternoon, when he drove Poe to the formalwear shop after school so they could pick up their tuxedos.

“Hux wanted to know if my mom could help out at the breakfast after the prom, so I asked her, and she said yes!” Poe told Ben, cheerful as could be.  It took everything Ben had for him not to cringe; the only thing worse than having the whole class at his house was having Poe’s mother there at the same time— _so_ much potential for embarrassment.  Still, Ben didn’t want to tell Poe that.  In the weeks they’d been dating, he’d realized that Poe was oddly sensitive about some things and sometimes got his feelings hurt for reasons Ben couldn’t fathom.  Ben suspected that Poe’s mom was one of those delicate subjects, and that Poe might be upset if Ben said he didn’t want her at his house.

“That’s good,” Ben said, even though it wasn’t.  “What’s she gonna do with your little brother?”  _Please don’t say she’s bringing him too,_ he added silently.

“He’s going to spend the night with one of his friends,” replied Poe, much to Ben’s relief.  “I’m glad, ‘cos he’ll be out of the way while I’m getting ready, too.  He. . . doesn’t really understand all this prom stuff, and he’s sort of been bugging me about it.”

“Oh.  I know he doesn’t like me,” muttered Ben.

Poe sighed, “I told you, he’s just jealous I’m not spending as much time with him as I used to.  Plus he doesn’t get why prom is such a big deal—I mean, he’s _ten_ , and he hates having to dress up.  He doesn’t understand why I’m excited about it.”  Poe turned to look at the window, and Ben gripped the steering wheel a little tighter as he thought, _I managed to piss him off anyway.  Why are relationships so **hard**?_

Neither of them said anything else before they reached the shop, and Ben trudged in behind Poe, sulking a bit.  The saleslady who had measured them remembered them—Ben wasn’t really surprised—and ushered Poe into a dressing room to try his suit on first.  Ben slumped in the same chair his father had used to wait while Poe changed.  He responded in monosyllables to the saleslady’s attempts at making conversation until Poe finally emerged with a shy expression on his face.

“How does it look?” he asked, aiming the question at Ben more than at the woman helping them.  Poe looked cute in his tuxedo—hell, he looked _beyond_ cute—but Ben was still irritated and just muttered, “Fine.”  Poe’s shy expression fell into a hurt one, and Ben immediately felt guilty and looked away.  The saleslady must have had more than a little experience dealing with teenagers, because she assured Poe that he looked very handsome then distracted him from Ben by checking the fit of his suit.

“Everything seems perfect,” she told Poe, “and you boys definitely made the right color choice when you went with the red—you’ve got such nice eyes, and the color makes them stand out.  You can go change now.”  She turned to Ben and added, “Your tuxedo is in the other dressing room, so you can go ahead and try yours on too.”  While Poe returned to his dressing room, Ben slunk into the other and put on the suit that was waiting for him.  He didn’t especially want Poe to see him in it just yet, but Ben figured he didn’t have much choice unless he wanted the saleslady crammed into the tiny room with him.

Ben stuck his head out around the door to find that Poe hadn’t yet emerged, so he hurried out, hoping he could get his suit checked before Poe had a chance to see him.  The saleslady looked him over and nodded.

“Seems to fit all right.  Let me check the length of the pants—you’re certainly tall for your age,” she said.

“I’m seventeen,” Ben muttered as the woman crouched at his feet and peered at the cuffs of his pants.  “I’m done growing.  I hope.”

“What about your date?” she chuckled.  “Quite a bit of height difference between you two.”

Not sure whether she was making fun of them or not, Ben growled, “I hope Poe’s done growing too.  I like him the way he is.”  The saleslady got back to her feet and smiled as she tugged on the bottom hem of his jacket.

“That’s good to hear.  I think you’ll make a very handsome couple.”

“Poe’s the handsome one,” mumbled Ben.  “He. . . he looked really good in his tux.  You’re right about his eyes, and the red, and all.”

“Let’s see if he thinks the same about yours.”  The woman chuckled outright and looked over Ben’s shoulder.  “Poe, is it?  Come take a look at your date.”

Ben flushed and looked over his shoulder too.  Poe had finished changing back into his shorts and had been watching—and, apparently, listening—from beside the dressing rooms.  He colored as well and came over to Ben, looking up at his face.

“Yeah.  The color looks good with your eyes too,” Poe murmured.  “You look really good, Ben.”  Ben hadn’t meant for Poe to hear what he’d been saying, and he tried to cover his embarrassment by turning back to the saleslady without replying to his boyfriend.

“Does it fit okay?” he asked her.  “I want to get out of it—I’m afraid I’m gonna do something to mess it up.”

“Yes, it fits,” the woman assured him, still with a bit of a smile.  “Go on and change, and I’ll get the suits wrapped up for you two.”

By the time Ben changed, the saleslady had finished draping Poe’s tuxedo in protective plastic, and she took Ben’s behind the counter to do the same to it.  Ben waited next to Poe off to one side, shifting from foot to foot as he fidgeted and wished she would hurry up so he could escape.

Poe glanced up at him and murmured, “Do you really think my tux looked okay?  You didn’t look like you liked it much.”

“It looked fine, Poe,” Ben sighed.

“And. . . you really don’t think I’m too short?”  Ben gave him an incredulous look, but Poe was staring at the floor as he shoved his hands in his pockets and went on, “You looked so nice and tall all dressed up.  What if I really am done growing?  I’m like, six inches shorter than you.  If I never grow anymore, I’ll be six inches shorter than you _forever_.”

 _What the hell is he going on about?_ Ben wondered.  Some guys always talked about women being hard to understand, but Ben decided that Poe was a bigger mystery than any girl ever could be.

“Poe, I. . . I meant it.  I like you the way you are,” Ben insisted.

Poe finally looked at him again and demanded in an anguished voice, “Are you _sure?_ ”  The expression in those remarkable eyes melted every last bit of irritation Ben felt towards him.

“Baby, c’mere,” Ben murmured, and he put his arms around the shorter boy and pulled Poe to him.  Poe hugged Ben tightly and pressed his cheek against Ben’s chest.  Ben whispered to him, “Of course I’m sure.  If you never grow another inch, you’ll still be perfect for me.  And you _do_ look great in your suit, I promise.”

“I thought you were mad at me,” Poe mumbled into Ben’s chest.

Ben countered, “I thought _you_ were mad at _me_ , because I was complaining about your brother.”

“I’m not mad.  I just want you to like him because. . . well, he’s my brother, and I love him.”  Poe squeezed Ben in his arms again and tilted his head to look up into Ben’s eyes.  “And um. . . if we’re gonna be together a long time, you’ll have to see him a lot.”

“We _are_ gonna be together a long time, rooster.  I promise.”  Ben smiled down at his boyfriend and was relieved when Poe smiled back.  “I’ll. . . I’ll try to get along with B.B., okay?  Maybe after the prom’s out of the way we could. . . I dunno, play video games with him or something.  Like if I hang out with him some, maybe he’ll like me better.”

Poe’s eyes lit up, and he leaned up on his toes suddenly to kiss Ben on the cheek as he whispered, “Thanks, _amorcito_.”

Ben was tempted to kiss Poe’s mouth, until he remembered where they were and that the saleslady had had more than enough time to wrap up his suit.  He looked back at the counter to find her watching them, again with a smile.  Ben gulped and nudged Poe, and they separated quickly.

“You’re ready to go,” the woman told them as they went up to the counter.  “To get your deposit back, you’ll need to return your suits on Saturday—in good condition, so don’t be too rough on them.”

Poe grinned.  “It’s just the prom.  We’re not going to do anything _that_ wild.”  The saleslady looked him over then glanced at Ben.

“Keep him in line, hmm?” she told the taller boy.  “He looks like trouble.”

“ _Me?_ ” Poe protested.  “ _He’s_ the troublemaker!”  In spite of himself, Ben couldn’t help but smile.

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” he said.

After they left with their suits, Ben drove Poe back to the school to get his car and pick up his brother from the after school program B.B. had been attending on the afternoons Poe was painting.  Before Poe got out of Ben’s car, he leaned over the console and hugged the larger boy again.

“Guess I’ll see you tomorrow, stork,” he mumbled.

Ben gave his hair a nuzzle and whispered, “Can I have a kiss first?”  Poe laughed and raised his mouth to Ben’s.

“I guess so,” he whispered back before kissing Ben, lightly at first, then deeper.  Ben pulled him closer and kissed Poe like he’d wanted to in the store.  Poe whimpered a little into his mouth, in that way he had that made Ben feel strong and even desirable.

“I can’t wait until Friday night,” Poe murmured when they broke apart.

“Me either,” Ben told him.

\--

When Friday arrived, though, Ben felt more nervous than excited.  As he sat through classes that morning, he thought of a thousand things that could go wrong before, during, or after the prom.  He wasn’t the only student not concentrating; hardly anything got accomplished that day, and it was just as well that the junior and senior classes got to leave school early that afternoon to get ready for the night ahead.

The junior class had finished decorating the gym the day before, and after lunch, they showed off their hard work as first the seniors, then the rest of the school wandered through.  Around one-thirty, they finally got dismissed, with a stern warning from Principal Organa not to cause any trouble during their time off.  Most of the girls flocked to various hair dressers and salons around town, and most of the boys were left to go pick up their corsages and boutonnieres at the florists.  Ben had ordered the roses he’d mentioned to Poe, but he wanted to wait until later to pick them up—mostly because he didn’t want to run into any of the other guys.

“What time are you coming over?” Poe asked him in the parking lot, before they went their separate ways.  “We have to be at the dinner at 5:30, and get our pictures done before that.”

“Ugh,” griped Ben.  “I hate pictures.”

“Yeah, but I know my mom’ll want to take some,” Poe pointed out.  “And so will _your_ mom, and then we have to come back here and get the professional one taken.”  In Ben’s opinion, taking that many photos was beyond ridiculous. . . but then he thought of having that many photos of himself with Poe and decided he could put up with it.

“I guess I’ll be at your house at four,” he sighed.  “Can you be dressed by then?”

“Yeah, if you can.”  Poe leaned up to whisper, “Are you gonna wear your eyeliner?  And nail polish?”

Ben flushed and mumbled, “I’m not painting all my nails, just the usual ones.  But, um. . . I’ll—I’ll bring the eyeliner, okay?  I don’t want to put it on until after we go to my house, so my mom doesn’t freak.  But I’ll do it before dinner.”

“Okay.”  Poe dropped back down on his heels and grinned up at him, brown eyes sparkling.  “I can’t wait—you’re gonna look so sexy.”

“Not as sexy as you will.”  Ben bent his head to kiss Poe lightly.  “I’ll see you soon, baby.”

“Okay,” Poe said again.  He gave Ben a sudden, tight hug then practically skipped off to his car.  Poe looked so happy, Ben tried to convince himself that nothing could possibly go wrong, despite all his worries.

 _At least Mom and Dad are still at work,_ Ben thought when he got home and went up to his room.  He fidgeted around for an hour, unable to concentrate on anything, until he thought it was safe to go to the florist.  If the guy working behind the counter there though it was weird for Ben to be picking up two boutonnieres and no corsages, he didn’t say so, and Ben escaped without seeing any of his classmates.

Back at home with the roses safely in the refrigerator, Ben finally got into his tuxedo and regarded himself in the mirror.  He wasn’t exactly thrilled with his appearance, and he spent some time messing with his hair in an attempt to style it in a way that made him look cooler, but he ended up combing it into the same style always did.  After painting his nails—the fourth on each hand, as usual—Ben stuck his eyeliner in a pocket and went downstairs to the kitchen and paced, watching the clock and wishing its hands would move faster.

Finally, _finally_ , 3:45 came, and Ben left with their flowers.  He made it to Poe’s house five minutes early but went to the door anyway, too impatient to wait.  Poe seemed to be just as impatient because he had the door open even before Ben had a chance to knock.

“Hi,” Poe mumbled from the shelter of the doorway, where he stood half-hidden by the door and nearly whispered with nervousness.  “Oh—oh _wow_ , you look nice.”  He smiled up at Ben before he asked shyly, “What do you think about me?”

“Get out here where I can see you,” Ben demanded with a nervous smile of his own.  When Poe stepped outside, Ben looked him over, and his smile grew.

“You look gorgeous,” he blurted out.  True to the saleslady’s word, the dark red touches to Poe’s suit made his brown eyes even warmer than usual and brought out a slight golden tint in their irises.  Poe’s tan cheeks flushed at the compliment even as he protested.

“I’m not _gorgeous_.”  He went over to Ben, clasped his forearms, and leaned up to kiss him.  Just before their lips met, he whispered, “You are, though.”  Ben couldn’t argue with Poe’s mouth covering his, which was probably exactly what Poe had counted on.

“Come on in,” Poe told Ben after the soft kiss.  “Mom’s home—she took off work early so she could see us before we leave.”

“Okay.  Oh, here. . . are these all right?” Ben asked, holding up the two small acetate boxes holding their rose boutonnieres, each a single rosebud nestled in a little spray of baby’s breath.

“Yeah—yeah!  Ben, they’re so pretty.”  Poe looked at the boutonnieres, then up at Ben.  “Did they cost a lot?”

“No, don’t worry about that, baby,” Ben reassured him.  Each one had cost fifteen dollars, which Ben _did_ think was an awful lot for a single flower, but Poe was worth it.  _I’d buy him a dozen roses, if that’s what he wanted,_ Ben thought as he followed his boyfriend into the house.

\--

To be continued


	18. Chapter 18

Being on the dinner committee had its perks, one of which was getting to assign the seating for the meal.  Phasma wanted to make sure that Hux and Nebula sat far away from her, so she put them at a table with Poe, Kylo, Rey, and Finn.  She and Peter, on the other hand, were seated with Peter’s friends—not that Phasma was especially looking forward to a formal dinner with the likes of Rocket and Groot, but it was better than having to be near Hux.

Nevertheless, she watch as he escorted Nebula into the dining room.  Nebula looked stunning, of course, but then she always did.  Hux looked nice too, Phasma was displeased to notice, although the navy blue accessories he wore to match Nebula’s dress didn’t really suit him.  Still, he was handsome no matter what he wore, and although he wasn’t smiling, he was far more gracious to Nebula than he had ever been to Phasma.  When Hux pulled out his date’s chair for her at their table, Phasma rolled her eyes and decided to quit looking at him.

Not that her own date hadn’t surprised her—pleasantly, even.  Peter had gotten to Phasma’s house on time, presented her with a lovely corsage, behaved politely toward her parents, and posed cheerfully for pictures.  (Only at her house and the country club though—he said his foster dad wasn’t the type to take photos, or to care about anything Peter did, for that matter.  “He just said not to knock you up,” Peter commented as he drove them to the country club.  Phasma cringed.)

What was more, everything about the dinner went off smoothly.  When she realized that the prom she had pretty much single-handedly planned wasn’t going down in flames—at least not yet—Phasma’s jangling nerves eased off a little, and she even was able to enjoy herself.  The food was delicious, and Peter’s friends. . . well, they weren’t really all that bad.  In fact, they were kind of amusing.

Arthur—the one Peter and the others called Drax—didn’t talk much, but Rocket and Peter more than made up for his and Groot’s comparative silence.  The only other girl at their table, Gamora, didn’t say a whole lot either, but Phasma found herself liking her: Gamora was a little brusque at first, but she warmed up to Phasma as the evening went on. . . and best of all, she didn’t put up with any shit from the guys.  Phasma didn’t even mind that Peter obviously had a thing for Gamora, and that Phasma herself was clearly his second choice for a date.

 _I knew going in that he only asked me to be his date because I was there and available,_ Phasma thought as she watched Peter try to impress Gamora by talking about the awesome dance moves he was going to show them later that night.   _And anyway, she really is gorgeous_.  Gamora’s dress was black with dark green accessories that coordinated well with her smooth brown skin.  She’d colored her long black hair in an ombre that shifted to deep red on the ends, and she wore it down, unlike Phasma who had swept her own blond hair up.

“Are you going to the breakfast at Kylo’s house, after the prom?” Phasma asked the other girl, while Peter was occupied by a competition with Rocket over who could finish his steak first.

“No, I can’t.”  Gamora shook her head.  “Dad’s making Nebula and me come straight home when the dance is over.  You’ve probably heard how strict he is.”

“Yeah, I guess,” murmured Phasma.  She’d seen Gamora’s huge, stern father a couple times before, and she couldn’t imagine his adopted daughters ever daring to argue with him.  “That sucks.”

Gamora smirked.  “It’s okay.  I think I’ve seen enough of the boys eating to last me for a while.  I don’t need to watch them have breakfast too.”

Phasma smiled, but she was thinking about something else: _Good, that means Nebula won’t be at the breakfast.  But. . . that means Hux probably won’t either._   Phasma told herself that was a good thing, because she wouldn’t have to see him after the prom ended.  Of course, there was an unofficial after-party, and Hux might go to that, date or no date, but that sort of party wasn’t Phasma’s thing; she was unapologetically straight-edge and regarded alcohol and weed as about as useful as boyfriends.

Phasma thought about what she’d told Rey some weeks before: _I’m just trying to get by until I can graduate and get out of this hellhole into the real world._   Prom seemed as far away from the real world as Phasma could get, and she decided it was just another hurdle to get over.

 _All the planning I did for it will look good on my college applications, and after we clean up the gym tomorrow afternoon, I won’t ever have to think about it again,_ she reminded herself.  _And then we’ll be out for the summer in another month, and I won’t have to think about Hux again either, at least not until August._   She flicked her eyes over at the boy in question, seated across from Poe at their table.  Hux was looking past Poe. . . straight at her.

Phasma felt her face heat up, but she couldn’t look away, not immediately.  Hux wasn’t glaring at her, like he had done every time they’d made eye contact in the past few weeks.  He wasn’t doing much of anything, just _looking_ at her.

“Hey, Phaz, guess what!”  She started as Peter elbowed her and crowed, “I beat Rocket—I ate my all steak _and_ the potato before he did.  Skin too!”  Phasma dragged her eyes away from Hux to cut them at her date.

“Don’t call me that.  And, you’re disgusting.  Both of you,” she added to include Rocket.  The smaller boy wasn’t paying her any attention though; instead, he was still glowering at Peter.

“Only ‘cos you got a bigger mouth, Quill,” Rocket muttered.  He had butter all over his face from his potato, and Gamora grimaced.

“Clean yourself up, Rocket,” she groaned.  He turned his glare on her and swiped at his mouth with his cloth napkin, missing the butter entirely.  Seated beside him, Groot smiled, picked up his own napkin, and wiped off the butter as Rocket flushed and tried to swat his hand away.

Phasma raised an eyebrow, then leaned over to Gamora and whispered, “No homo?  Really?”  Gamora laughed a little and shrugged.

“I try not to think too hard about what any of the guys are doing,” she whispered back.  Phasma laughed herself; then Rocket and Peter started bickering about something else, and she even forgot about Hux for a little while.

\--

Meanwhile, Poe didn’t think he’d ever been so happy before in his life.

Even though he’d gotten impatient with all the picture-taking—first by his mother, then by Principal Organa at Ben’s house, _then_ by a professional photographer in front of a staged backdrop at the country club when they arrived for the dinner—Poe loved every minute he’d spent with Ben that afternoon.  On their way to the country club, Ben had pulled over his car and applied the eyeliner he’d brought, looking in the rearview mirror.  Poe wondered what Principal Organa would think when she saw her son wearing makeup in his professional prom photos, but he decided not to bring it up.  _He_ thought Ben looked irresistibly hot, and he didn’t want to say anything to change his date’s mind about wearing the eyeliner.

Poe and Ben did turn some heads when they joined their classmates at the country club.  Maybe the other kids were judging Ben for his eyeliner, as he assumed in a mutter under his breath, but Poe preferred to think that everyone was just surprised at how good they looked together.  (More likely, they were still getting over the surprise of Poe and Ben being together at all, but Poe was an eternal optimist.)  Even Phasma reacted positively; as they passed her on the way to their assigned table in the dining room of the club, she commented, “You two look hot.”  High praise indeed.

The only downside to the evening so far was that Hux and his date had been seated at the same table with Poe, Ben, Finn, and Rey.  Poe tried to be polite to them, and Ben, at least, talked to Hux some.  His date, Nebula, did look nice.  She wore a delicate tiara in her short, platinum blond hair, and Hux’s tuxedo was perfectly matched to her navy blue dress.

Rey looked pretty too, but she and Finn didn’t match quite so well.  Poe thought Rey’s dress was tasteful, as far as he could tell without knowing much about women’s clothing; it was champagne-colored with a high neckline and long, sweeping skirt.  Finn’s vest and tie, however, were gold.  _Really_ gold.  Bright, metallic, flashy gold.

“Rey said her dress was _gold_ ,” Finn defended himself when Poe asked him what had happened, “so I got gold!  She didn’t tell me it was. . . was. . . _yellow_.”

“It’s not yellow,” Rey protested.  “It’s gold, right, Poe?”

“I, uh. . . I don’t know,” Poe stammered.  “It looks sort of tan to me.”  Finally, Rey was forced to turn to the other female at the table for help.

“Nebula—tell them it’s gold.”

“Of course it’s gold,” Nebula sniffed.  “All of you boys are idiots.”  She glanced at Hux.  “At least you got it right—although I didn’t really think about how blue would look with your hair.  You look like an American flag.”  Ben and Finn snickered at the same time, then gave each other surprised glances.

 _At least they’ve found something to agree on,_ thought Poe.

Aloud, he told Finn and Rey, “Well, you both look nice, whatever color it is.  Rey, I like your hair like that.”

“Oh.”  She colored faintly.  “Thanks.”  Normally, Rey wore her hair in knots on the back of her head, but that night, she had swept it up into a single large cluster at the base of her neck.  She looked Poe over then said, “Well, you and Ben did all right for yourselves too.  Nice flowers.  Did you pick them out?”

“No.”  Poe grinned and squeezed his boyfriend’s hand under the table.  “Ben did.  He did good, right?”  Ben squeezed his hand back, but then shot a glare at Hux when the other boy raised an eyebrow.

“Roses,” he observed with a sarcastic note to his voice.  “Very romantic.  So is the makeup you’re wearing, Kylo.”

“It’s just eyeliner,” Ben growled.

“Guyliner is sexy,” declared Nebula, “if a guy can pull it off.  Kylo’s edgy enough for it.  It wouldn’t work on you, Hux.”

“Good,” Hux grumbled, “because you wouldn’t catch me dead in it.”

Nebula ignored him and said to Ben, “Don’t listen to him.  It’s hot on you.”

“ _Yeah_ it is,” Poe added, still grinning.  Ben finally gave him a little smile in return and rubbed his thumb over the back of Poe’s hand.

Any further antagonism by Hux was curtailed by the arrival of their dinner.  The food was delicious—Phasma’s team had done a good job putting together the menu—but Poe was too excited to eat much.  Ben too picked at his steak, whereas Rey practically inhaled hers, ignoring the look Nebula gave her as the blonde ate her meal in a more ladylike manner.  Finn, having recovered from the scolding Rey gave him for his attire, chattered away cheerfully, and Hux continued to sulk.  He kept looking at something over Poe’s shoulder, until finally Poe turned in his chair to see what was so fascinating.

He understood when he realized Phasma was sitting directly behind him, a couple tables away.  She did look pretty; her dress was silver, her favorite color, and her long blonde hair was piled up on top of her head in an elaborate hairstyle, rather than pulled back in her usual severe ponytail.  But Phasma not only looked pretty, she also looked _happy_.  She was, in fact, laughing at something one of Peter Quill’s friends was saying.  Poe tried to remember the last time he’d seen Phasma laugh, and he couldn’t.

 _Too bad for Hux,_ Poe thought as he turned back around to nibble at his baked potato.  _But good for her.  Maybe she’ll actually have fun, for once in her life._

Ben started to fidget after he gave up on trying to eat, and he put his hand back under the table, this time to grope Poe’s thigh.  Poe squirmed and leaned over to whisper to him.

“Stop that!  You’re gonna get me. . . um, excited,” he hissed.

“We could go fool around in the bathroom,” Ben whispered back.  Poe wasn’t sure if he was joking or not, but he gave Ben a stern look just in case.

“You’d mess up your ‘guyliner,’” he retorted. . . but he kissed Ben’s cheek before sitting back in his chair.  Hux rolled his eyes at them, but Ben didn’t seem to notice; he was too distracted by Poe.  He smiled at the smaller boy, and Poe relented and squeezed his hand.  Despite how much he was enjoying himself, Ben’s touch made Poe start thinking about getting to dance with his boyfriend, and he fidgeted in his chair, wishing that dinner was over and it was time to leave for the school.

The arrival of dessert helped pass the time: it was some kind of fancy chocolate tart. . . _thing_ , and it was delicious.  Despite his lack of appetite, Poe cheerfully consumed all of his slice.

“Phasma did pretty good choosing the menu,” he said to Ben around the last mouthful.

“She did a good job with just about everything,” said Rey when she overheard. “She worked really hard, and it shows.”  She gave Hux a rather pointed look, and he lowered his own gaze to his plate.  Ben ignored the drama around them and offered Poe the rest of his half-eaten dessert.

“You really like chocolate, don’t you?” he chuckled when Poe made a half-hearted protest, then accepted.

“Yeah, but you do too, right?” Poe mumbled around a mouthful, until Nebula gave him a scathing look for talking with his mouth full.  Poe swallowed then said, “I mean, I’ve seen you eat it a lot since we started—um, dating.”

“Of course I like it.”  Ben smiled at him, a little shyly, then whispered, “I’m just. . . not very hungry.  I’m nervous.”

Poe leaned closer and whispered back, “I’m too excited to be very hungry, but I’m almost always hungry enough for chocolate.  But why are you nervous?”  Ben’s pale face colored slightly, and his smile faded a bit.

“I’m afraid I’m going to screw something up tonight,” he murmured.  Poe laid his head on Ben’s shoulder for a moment, then kissed his cheek again.

“You’re not,” Poe whispered to Ben.  “We’re gonna have a great time.  It’s going to be perfect.”

\--

Ben still wasn’t convinced that he wasn’t going to do something to embarrass himself, even when they made it to the school without anything horrible happening.  But Poe grabbed his hand and laced his small fingers through Ben’s as they walked into the darkened gym together, and Ben managed to forget his nerves, for the most part, when he looked down at his boyfriend beside him.  Poe glanced back up at him and smiled.

“The decorations look great, don’t they?” he asked.  “And our painting’s the best part.  I told you, we make a good team!”

“Yeah, we do,” Ben murmured, not referring to painting at all.  But then he dragged his eyes away from Poe and looked around at the gym instead.  “I guess it all looks pretty nice.  Even the pretentious steampunk bullshit parts.”

“You’re not going on about that again, are you?” Rey complained from behind them, where she and Finn had followed them in.  Ben resigned himself to having to put up with the other couple for the evening, but at least they’d lost Hux and Nebula on the way over from the country club.

Ben sighed, “I said it looks nice, okay?”  He was saved from further conversation when the live band—amateur-sounding, but live—began to play the first song of the evening.  Of course it was “Time After Time” to fit with the prom theme, and Ben bit back a groan.  He hated the song, but he’d already resigned himself to hearing it that evening, possibly more than once.

He looked back down at Poe and asked, “Um, do you want to dance?”

“Yeah,” Poe murmured back.  He drew Ben away from Rey and Finn to an open spot and reached up to put his arms around the taller boy’s neck.  Ben wrapped his own arms around Poe’s waist and pulled him a little closer.  Poe smiled up at him again, then leaned against Ben’s chest as they began to slow-dance.  Ben glanced around to see that nearly every other couple had started to dance as well—Finn looked comically nervous with his hands on Rey’s waist a few yards away—and that no one was paying him and Poe the least bit of attention.  Ben was finally able to relax and just enjoy being with the boy he believed he’d fallen in love with.

Ben tilted his head down to kiss Poe’s cheek.  Poe’s skin felt soft and warm against his lips, and so did his hair when Ben nuzzled it.  He heard Poe make a soft noise of contentment; then the smaller boy leaned up on his toes to kiss Ben’s cheek in return.

“Ben,” he whispered while he was up there, “I’m so happy.  I’m so glad I’m with you.”

“I am too,” Ben whispered back.  He almost told Poe he loved him, right then and there, but he faltered at the last second.  Poe put his head back on Ben’s chest, and they danced instead.

\--

To be continued


	19. Chapter 19

The music didn’t get much better throughout the evening, and there weren’t enough slow songs for Ben’s taste—not that he liked the slow songs any better than the faster rap and techno ones, but he wanted more dances with Poe.  All in all, though, it wasn’t so bad, because Poe stayed close to his side and held his hand throughout the whole first hour of the prom, and Ben exulted in the knowledge that everyone else was seeing them together.

Rey and Finn stuck around, and somehow more kids began gathering at the edge of their group, until Ben found himself standing with the others, watching Peter Quill dance.  Peter was good at dancing, weirdly enough, even to the faster songs, but he couldn’t get anyone to dance with him.  Phasma utterly refused, although she had danced the first few slow songs with Peter; she now stood off to one side, bare arms folded across her silver-sequined chest and her crimson capelet thrown back over her shoulders, while she watched her date make a fool of himself.  Peter then tried to coax Gamora to join him, but she only shook her head and stood between her own date and Phasma.

“Peter _is_ a good dancer,” Rey murmured to Poe and Finn.  “And kind of cute.”

“Cute?” Finn spluttered.  “You think that dork is _cute_?”  Even Ben could tell that Rey was trying to suppress a smile, but poor Finn was too jealous to realize he was getting played.

“Confidence is sexy,” Rey declared.  “Right?” she added over her shoulder, addressing Phasma and Gamora.

“I don’t know.  Peter’s a little _too_ confident,” muttered Gamora, but Phasma only smirked and shrugged.

“ _Sexy?_ ” cried Finn.  “Okay, that’s it.  C’mon, Poe.”  He grabbed Poe’s arm and started hauling the smaller boy away from Ben’s side, toward where Peter had slowed his moves to watch their approach.

“Hey, what’re you doing?” Poe protested, following Finn nevertheless.

“Poe!” Ben yelped.

“You want Poe back, you gotta come dance too,” Finn called to him.  Ben shot his date a desperate look, but Poe just gave Ben an embarrassed grin in return.

“Yeah, come dance with us!” Poe suggested, but Ben shook his head and drew back a step.  Not even Poe could convince him to do something as stupid as dance to a rap song in front of the entire junior and senior classes.  Rey moved to stand beside Ben, somewhat to his surprise, and watched the boys.

“This is your fault,” Ben muttered as Finn and Poe started to dance alongside Peter—Finn with a comical determination, and Poe with a bit more apprehension.

“My fault?” Rey asked, shooting him a wide-eyed, innocent look that didn’t fool Ben for a minute.

“Yeah, yours.”  Ben glared at her, but she just laughed.

“You’ll get your Poe back in a minute.  Let him have some fun,” Rey chided him.

Ben muttered, “We _were_ having fun,” then turned to watch Poe.  He _did_ look cute as he tried to copy the way Peter and Finn were dancing—maybe a little dorky, but not as dorky as the other two, and definitely a lot hotter.  The girls, even Phasma, were all laughing now as they watched; Gamora’s date Arthur, as well as Peter’s other friends Rocket and Groot, looked incredulous and faintly embarrassed.  Rocket shook his head and muttered something Ben couldn’t overhear.

“Hey, bet I know one move you _can’t_ do,” Finn challenged Peter loudly over the music.  “Let’s see you twerk, white boy!”

The smile dropped from Phasma’s face as she groaned, “Oh no, let’s _not_.”

For a second, Peter looked dismayed, but then he forced a grin and retorted, “I’m a better dancer than _you_ , no matter what.”

“Oh yeah?  Then let’s see.  Bring it,” snorted Finn.

“No, no, _no_ ,” Phasma was hissing.  Gamora glanced at her, and, for a second, a truly wicked look passed over Gamora’s pretty face.

“Do it, Peter!” she called, and Phasma actually winced.  Even in the dim lighting, Ben could see Peter blushing, but then he spread his feet apart and braced his legs.

“Fine, watch this!” he declared.  And he tried, he really did, enough so that even Ben felt embarrassed for him.  Peter did manage to shake his butt a little, but he kept his legs way too stiff.  Finn laughed, and Phasma grumbled, “That’s enough, you can stop now,” under her breath.

“You suck, Quill,” Finn chuckled.  “Look, you gotta do it like this.  Spread your legs more and bend at the knees, but keep yourself straight from the waist up.”  He was demonstrating as he talked, while the watching boys’ eyes widened, the smile began to creep back over Phasma’s face, and Rey looked increasingly horrified.  
  
“Then slide your hands down your legs,” Finn went on, “so you’re leaning forward. . . and then you just sort rock your butt up.”  He kept on modeling the moves he described, and Ben decided it was time to quit watching. . . until Finn urged, “Hey Poe, you try it.”

“I’m not sure,” Poe laughed.  He looked over at Ben, who was now staring at back at him.  “Ben, should I?”

As everyone turned to look at Ben, most of them smirking, he stammered, “I. . . I dunno.  If—if you want to?”

“C’mon, Poe, just try it,” Finn begged.  “You can’t be worse at it than Peter!”

“Fine, fine,” Poe mumbled.  He gave Ben one more nervous glance, then spread his legs and bent his knees as Finn had instructed.  Ben watched, intrigued, as Poe braced his small hands on his thighs and slid them down, leaning forward and thrusting his ass out.

 _Oh God,_ Ben thought as he ogled his boyfriend.  Poe’s position had pulled his pants tight over his thighs and hips, and Ben felt himself begin to tense up with desire at the sight.

“Okay, okay, now shake your butt,” Finn directed him.

“Like this?” Poe asked, shaking his hips from side to side in a constricted but smooth motion.

“Whoa,” Ben overheard Phasma breathe, and he shot her a glare before turning his eyes back to Poe.

“Nunh unh, up and down,” corrected Finn.  Poe shifted his movement to flick his ass up in tiny jerks, and Ben had to bite his lip to keep from moaning.  What looked like a ridiculous dance move when performed by anyone else, became almost unbearably sexy when Poe did it.

“That’s it!” Finn whooped.  He and Peter applauded, and the girls watched Poe with expressions ranging from horrified to almost lustful.

“Oh my God,” Rey hissed.  “This is _so_ embarrassing.  I don’t know him.  I don’t know _any_ of them.”

But all Ben could do was stare.  Poe glanced at him, saw the expression on Ben’s face, and broke into a cocky grin—then he started twerking faster, with a more pronounced shaking of his ass.

 _Oh fuck,_ Ben thought, _fuck fuck **fuck**._   It took him a moment to realize he was getting hard, and he prayed his tuxedo jacket would conceal it, yet he couldn’t take his eyes off Poe or stop imagining what it would feel like to have Poe rubbing that ass against _him_.

Finally, _finally_ , Poe stopped dancing and straightened up, flushed and breathing hard.  Finn was still laughing and crowing about how Poe had shown Peter up, but Poe wasn’t really paying attention.  He gave Rey an apologetic look then came back to Ben’s side.

“Well?” he demanded of Ben in a whisper, looking up at the taller boy.  “What’d you think?”  Ben swallowed hard and just shook his head a little, unable to speak.  Poe’s smile fell into a frown, and he whispered, “What?  Did I embarrass you?”

Ben leaned down, pressed his mouth to Poe’s ear, and muttered, “No, you got me fuckin’ hard.”

“Ben!” Poe gasped.  He drew back to give Ben a playfully stern look, but he couldn’t hold back his smile.  Ben was aware of the others watching them, all smirking or laughing; still, he didn’t really care when he saw how Poe was looking at him.  The band had begun another slow song, and Ben took the opportunity to grasp Poe’s hand and tug him away from the group, pulling the smaller boy into his arms to dance.  Poe seemed to melt against his chest, and he slipped his arms around Ben’s neck and snuggled close to him.

“You looked so hot,” Ben whispered.  “I’ve never seen a guy dance like that before, but oh God, Poe, you have the hottest ass in the world.”

“Ben,” Poe mumbled again with a laugh, “y-you’re so—so _bad_.”

“Hey, I’m not the one twerking for everybody,” Ben teased him.  But Poe wasn’t really listening; he was pressing closer to Ben, and for a second, Ben felt Poe grinding against him.  He and Poe both drew in their breath at the same time.

“You _are_ hard,” hissed Poe.

“Told you,” Ben nearly groaned.  He dropped his hands from Poe’s waist to his hips, slid them back to his ass, then held the smaller boy tight against him once more while they rubbed against each other.  “Oh God, Poe, that feels so good.”

“B-ben, you gotta stop. . . .”  Poe broke off in a small moan as he ground on Ben for a few more seconds.  Ben thought he felt Poe start getting hard too, but then Poe drew back enough to break the contact between their groins.

“We can’t do that,” Poe whispered.  “If a chaperone sees us, we’d get in trouble.”

“You’re no fun,” Ben complained, although he leaned down to kiss his boyfriend’s cheek a second later to prove he didn’t mean it.  Poe leaned against his chest again and hugged Ben’s neck.

He murmured, “We’ll have fun later, okay, _amorcito_?” in a tone of voice that turned Ben on all over again.

\--

Phasma was happy to turn Peter loose after he tried to twerk.  He’d danced a few slow dances with her before that—and he _did_ dance well when he wasn’t twerking—but Phasma was aware of the longing looks he cast toward Gamora and Arthur every now and then.  Phasma wasn’t crazy about dancing anyway, even slow dancing, and she’d had enough even before her date managed to make himself look like an even bigger idiot than normal.

Still. . . he _was_ funny, and so was Finn, and Phasma couldn’t help laughing as she watched them.  (Poe Dameron, on the other hand. . . she wasn’t laughing when _he_ danced.  Even Phasma could appreciate a nice ass when she saw one.)  When the band finally played another slow song and Peter asked, quite politely, if she’d like to dance again, Phasma declined.  Peter nodded and gave a surreptitious glance over to where Gamora was standing by Arthur, both of them looking uncomfortable.

Phasma sighed, “Look, Peter, I’ve had a good time and all, but it’s _okay_.  Go dance with Gamora.”

Peter stared at her.  “But—”

“Really.”  Phasma smiled faintly.  “I know how you feel about her.  It’s all right.  You’ve been very sweet all evening, but I’ll be fine.  Hey, she said she has to go straight home after the dance, so. . . if Arthur doesn’t mind and you want to take her home, I can find another ride.”

“Are you sure?” Peter asked, but Phasma noticed how his eyes lit up.

“Yes, I’m sure.”  Her smile grew a little; then on an impulse, she leaned over and pecked him on the cheek.  Peter looked startled and even blushed.

“Th-thanks, Phasma,” he mumbled.  “If you don’t find a ride, let me know, okay?”  Phasma nodded, starting to get a little impatient, until Peter finally left her side and went over to Gamora.  Phasma smirked when Gamora agreed to dance with him immediately.

 _They obviously like each other,_ Phasma thought.  _They should have just come together in the first place._

Phasma retreated to a spot over by one of Poe and Kylo’s painted backdrops, where she hoped no one would notice her alone.  Almost everyone else was dancing in couples, except for Arthur who had been moping about his absent girlfriend all evening anyway.  Even Groot and Rocket were dancing, off in a corner where, Phasma guessed, Rocket thought no one would notice _them_.  Rocket was so short, and his date so tall, that he could hardly reach up far enough to put his arms around Groot’s neck.  He looked up at the much taller boy and said something; then Groot leaned down and planted a kiss on Rocket’s forehead.  Rocket’s eyes widened, and he cast a frantic look around them to see if anyone had noticed as he swatted Groot’s mouth away, but the ever-patient Groot just smiled.

Phasma was so busy watching them, she didn’t notice Hux approaching her until he was right beside her.  When he spoke her name, she jumped, startled, and turned her head to stare at him.

“Will you dance with me?” Hux asked her.  Phasma stared at him, half expecting he was trying to make fun of her, but he only looked back at her seriously.

“Okay,” she finally said.  The current song was nearly over by the time she had put her hands up on his shoulders and he’d put his on her waist, but the band began another slow song right away.  Phasma kept her head turned down as they started to dance.  She didn’t want to look at Hux, she didn’t want to dance with Hux, she didn’t even want to _think_ about Hux. . . and yet, there she was.

 _I could have said no,_ she scolded herself. _Why didn’t I say no?_

“You look really nice,” said Hux.  Phasma looked up at him before she could stop herself; he was looking back down at her, again completely serious.

“Um, thanks,” Phasma muttered.  “So do you.”

“Nebula said I look like an American flag,” Hux commented, and Phasma surprised herself by laughing.  A faint, answering smile flickered over Hux’s mouth.

“I guess,” said Phasma, “but it’s her own fault.  At least, I’m assuming she’s the one who picked the blue.  Where _is_ Nebula, anyway?” she added, silently asking, _Why are you dancing with me and not her?_

Hux shrugged.  “Over there somewhere.  She and Gamora have to go home right after the dance.”

“I know, Gamora told me.  Peter’s gonna take Gamora home, I think—he’s got it pretty bad for her, so who am I to stand in their way?”  Phasma realized she was rambling, making the same sardonic observations about their classmates she and Hux had used to share before their fight.  It felt like a normal thing to be doing.  It felt. . . _good_ to talk to Hux again.

“Didn’t Peter bring you, though?” Hux asked.  “How are you getting home to change?  You _are_ coming to Kylo’s after this, aren’t you?”

Phasma glanced up at him again to see that he was watching her with a concerned look.  For some reason, it annoyed her.  _He’s worried about me **now**?_ she thought. _He hasn’t cared what I was doing for weeks, so why now?_

“I don’t know, I’ll ride with someone,” she muttered, looking away again.  “If Peter’s taking Gamora, Arthur could give me a ride.  Then I can drive myself to the breakfast if he doesn’t want to go.”

“ _Arthur?_ ” Hux fairly scoffed.  “Look, I’ll take you home.  Nebula can ride with Gamora and Peter if they’re going to her house anyway.”

“Oh, I’m sure Peter would love that,” Phasma retorted, “getting cockblocked by Gamora’s ice queen sister.”  Hux gave her a look of mild incredulity, and she thought maybe his pale cheeks reddened a little.

“I wasn’t under the impression that Peter was counting on scoring tonight,” he said after a minute.  “Why are you trying to set him and Gamora up, anyway?  He’s _your_ date.”

“Yeah, and he likes _her_.”  Phasma sighed and wondered how something as simple as dancing with Hux had turned into a minor argument.  “I’m not trying to set them up, but it’s silly for him to be hanging around _me_ when Gamora’s the one he really likes.  It’s not like I have feelings for Peter anyway.”

“Then why’d you kiss him?” Hux challenged.  “And why’d you come to the prom with him in the first place?”

Phasma stopped dancing altogether to glare up at Hux.  He stopped moving too but kept his hands on her waist as he looked back down at her.

“What do you mean, why’d I kiss him?  I kissed him on the _cheek_ because he was being nice.  Why were _you_ watching us?  And I came to the prom with him because he asked me,” Phasma snapped.  “Neither of us had dates, so why not?”

“ _You_ had a date,” Hux informed her, “with me.  But you dumped me to go with him, and now you’re fine with him going after someone else.”

“I did not dump you to go with Peter,” Phasma muttered.  “I didn’t dump you at _all_ —we weren’t ever dating—but Peter has nothing to do with. . . with anything.  I didn’t want to go to the prom with you because you always take it for granted that I’ll be your date to everything, when you don’t even care about me at all.”

“And _Peter_ cares about you?” Hux grumbled.  He was glaring now too.

“Not like _that_ , but at least he appreciates having me for his date.  And he’s funny, and. . . and he thinks I’m pretty,” Phasma finished, rather lamely.

Hux looked away and muttered, “So?  _I_ think you’re pretty.”

Phasma’s mouth fell open for a second before she managed to say, “Well, why don’t you ever _tell_ me that?”  She pulled away from Hux before he could say anything else, biting down on her lip.  He was still looking down at her, now with an expression of vague concern as if he weren’t quite sure what she wanted from him.  But then, Phasma wasn’t sure herself, and for some inexplicable and stupid reason, she felt like she was about to cry.

She turned away from Hux before that could happen and hurried for the girls’ locker room.

“Phasma?” Hux called after her, but she ignored him.  No one else seemed to notice her departure, and when she reached the seclusion of the locker room, Phasma leaned over one of the sinks and took a deep breath.  Then, hating herself, she started to cry.

Phasma _never_ cried, certainly not in a public place, and _certainly_ not over Hux.  She thought things couldn’t get much worse than that, but then she heard the creak of the locker room door being pushed open by another girl.  _Shit,_ Phasma thought, yanking a paper towel out of the dispenser and doing her best to crush the tears out of her eyes without messing up her makeup too badly.

“Phasma?”

“What.”  Phasma didn’t even recognize the voice until she looked over at the door and saw Rey standing there.

“Are you all right?”

 _What the hell do you care?_ Phasma thought, but had the tact not to say.

“Yeah,” she muttered aloud, “I’m fine.”  She had stopped crying, thank God, and she concentrated on glaring into the mirror and trying to dab the smeared mascara away from her eyes.  Her handbag holding her makeup was outside in the gym, in the pile where most of the other girls had dropped theirs too, so clearing away the damage was the most she could do at the moment.

“Is Hux being a dick again?” Rey persisted.  Phasma paused, met her own eyes in the mirror, then straightened up and looked over at Rey again.

“Sort of,” Phasma replied, although she couldn’t have said why she was bothering to answer Rey of all people.  “Well. . . no, not really.  He was being nice.  Or trying to.  He kind of sucks at it.”  Rey looked back at her a moment, then crossed the locker room to stand at the other sink and look at her own reflection.

“Want me to kick his ass?” she offered.  Phasma stared at her then, to her own amazement, laughed.  Rey looked back at her and smiled.

“No,” Phasma finally sighed.  “Thanks for the offer, but I could kick it myself if I needed to.  He really was trying, I guess.  I just—it’s me.  It’s not him, it’s me.”

“Don’t give me that line.  You broke up with _him_ , not me,” Rey sniffed.

Phasma clenched her hands over the sinks of the sink and growled, “For the last time, I did not break up with him.  I did not _dump_ him.  Because _we weren’t going together._   Why does everyone think that?”  Rey didn’t answer; she just turned to watch Phasma while leaning against her sink on one hip.

“This is all so stupid,” Phasma grumbled.  “It doesn’t matter.  None of it matters.  It’s just high school.”

“It’s not just _anything_ ,” Rey announced abruptly.  “Phasma, you told me you were just trying to get by until you graduated and you could start your real life.  But _this_ is your life too.  We’re all sixteen or seventeen years into our lives, and it _does_ matter because that’s all some people get.  We could—we could all die tomorrow, and then where would you be?”

“We’re not all going to die tomorrow, Rey.”  Phasma gave up on her makeup and tossed the paper towel into the trash can.

“That’s not the point,” Rey persisted.  “You know what the point is—you can’t just live for the future.  You should do what makes you happy _now_ , too.”

“And I suppose you know what would make me happy?” Phasma shot back.

Undeterred, Rey said, “I think I know _who_ would.”  Phasma glowered at herself in the mirror; then she sighed and dropped her head to look down into the sink.

“I’m sorry, Rey,” she mumbled.  “For getting pissed at you, I mean.  Thanks for checking on me.”

“Yeah,” said Rey.  “You’re welcome.”  She left the sink but paused at the locker room door.  “It’s almost ten, so you’d better hurry up if you don’t want to miss the last dance,” Rey told Phasma; then she went back out into the gym.

“Yeah,” Phasma said after Rey was gone.  She looked at her makeup again, poked at her hair, then followed.

The band was playing something fast, but Rey was right; it was almost time for the prom to be over.  Most of the kids were getting either restless or tired, fidgeting and talking instead of dancing.  Phasma saw Rey first, talking to Finn, Poe, and Kylo; then she saw Hux.  He was standing by Nebula, who in turn was standing near her sister, arms folded and clearly ready to leave.  Gamora was talking to Peter and ignoring Nebula.  Apparently, she’d made arrangements to ride with him, because Arthur was nowhere in sight.

 _I guess I’m stuck riding with Hux,_ Phasma thought. _Figures._   She swallowed what little of her pride remained and started over toward him.  He saw her coming and took a step in her direction.

“Can you still give me a ride?” Phasma muttered when they were close enough to speak.  “It looks like Arthur’s already gone.”

“Sure,” said Hux.  “Yeah, Peter’s taking Gamora home, so Arthur left.  Nebula’s riding with them.”  Phasma nodded without meeting his eyes.  After a pause, Hux added, “And I can take you over to Kylo’s after you change.  No point in us both driving.  If you don’t mind stopping by my house so I can change too.”

“That’s fine,” Phasma mumbled.  The band ended their faster music and announced the last dance of the night.  She finally looked up at Hux as the slow song started.  He was watching her with a strange expression, and it took her a second to realize he looked nervous.  The expression seemed unfamiliar because Hux _never_ looked nervous.

“Uh, you want to dance?” Phasma heard herself ask.  “It’s the last song.  We might as well.”

“Yeah,” said Hux.  He took her arm and led her a bit away from the others before putting his hands on her waist like before.

As Phasma lifted her own hands to his neck, Hux said, “Phasma, I’m sorry, okay?  About everything.”

Phasma sighed, “I’m sorry too.  Especially about bitching at you just now.  I know you were trying to be nice.”

“I wasn’t just being nice,” Hux murmured.  “I meant it, you look pretty.  I do care about you.  And—I’ve missed you.  I told Kylo I didn’t, but. . . I do.”

“Since when do you talk about me to Kylo?” Phasma asked.  She was finally able to look at him again, raising an eyebrow.  “Since when has Kylo talked about anything except Poe, for that matter?”  Hux smiled, a little, and didn’t answer.  Phasma knew they were going to have to talk about it more than that, but she didn’t feel like hashing things out just then.

She looked away again and muttered, “But I’ve missed you too, Hux.  I made a mistake.”

“No, you didn’t.”  Phasma was about to look back up at him, in confusion this time, but Hux startled her when he tightened his arms around her waist and pulled her against his chest.  He said, “You were right, I _was_ taking you for granted.  I’m sorry.”

“Thanks,” Phasma said weakly.  Hux didn’t say anything else, just kept holding her close to him as they danced.  Eventually, she leaned her head on his shoulder, thinking that Rey had guessed correctly: Phasma was happy.

\--

When the band announced the last dance, Poe felt a little sad, and he had to remind himself that the night wasn’t all over yet.  _We still have breakfast coming,_ he thought as Ben put his arms around Poe and pulled him close to dance a final time.  _I’ll get to be with him until midnight at least!_   He looked up at Ben and hugged his boyfriend around the neck; Ben gazed back down at him with a small, shy smile.

“Poe,” Ben murmured after a few seconds, “thank you for coming with me.  And for being my boyfriend.  I probably don’t deserve it, but you—you’ve made me really happy.”

“What do you mean, you don’t deserve it?” Poe retorted playfully.  “You’re wonderful.  And you make me happy too.”  He leaned up to kiss Ben’s cheek again, like they had been doing all evening, and Ben hugged him even tighter.  Poe felt one of Ben’s hands slide up his back, and Ben’s long fingers nestled in his hair to hold Poe’s head against his own.

“I love you, Poe,” Ben whispered in a quick, faltering mumble.  “I love you so much.”  Poe nearly stepped on Ben’s feet in surprise, and he felt as if his heart stopped altogether.  He heard himself draw in a shaky breath.

“I love you too,” Poe blurted out; then he hugged Ben so hard, he practically wrung the taller boy’s neck.  “Ben, I love you too.”  Poe turned his head to kiss Ben on the mouth, hard, not caring whether a chaperone saw them or not.  Ben clenched his fingers in Poe’s hair as he kissed Poe back.  They quit dancing altogether as they kissed, and they didn’t stop until the song had ended and someone turned up all the lights in the gym, all at once.  Poe finally pulled back a little, blushing, and looked up at Ben.  The taller boy’s cheeks were flushed too, but he was smiling broadly.

“You’re so cute when you smile, stork,” Poe grinned.

“Not as cute as you.  Rooster.”  Ben leaned down to kiss Poe again, but they were interrupted by Rey’s groan of disgust.

“Would you two stop that?” she grumbled as she and Finn passed the two boys on their way out.  “It’s bad enough when the lights are down, but it’s worse when everyone has to look at you.”

“Go to hell, Rey,” said Ben, about as cheerfully as Poe had ever heard him sound.  He took Poe’s hand and pulled him toward the door.  “Let’s get over to my house,” Ben said over his shoulder as they went.  “We’ll have time to be alone before everyone else gets there.”

“Time to be alone and do _what_ exactly?” Poe laughed.  “There won’t be _enough_ time to do much.”  When they reached Ben’s car, Ben drew Poe back into his arms for another kiss.

“I wanna watch you change clothes,” Ben whispered afterwards.

“You’re a perv,” retorted Poe.  He leaned up to kiss Ben on the nose.  “ _Te quiero, amorcito_.”

Ben chuckled, “I’m a perv, but you want me anyway?”

Poe shook his head.  “I kind of lied.  ‘ _Te quiero_ ’ really means ‘I love you.’”

“Poe. . . .”  Ben stared at him then stammered, “You—you mean you’ve been saying it for all this time?  You. . . you little jerk, I was so afraid to tell you, and you—ugh!”  His smile proved he didn’t mean the “jerk” part.

“Come on, we’re not going to have _any_ time alone if we stand out here all night,” Poe said, pulling away from Ben and going to the passenger door of his car.  Ben was _still_ smiling as he unlocked the car and they got in—in fact, Poe wondered if Ben had ever smiled so much before in his life.

\--

To be continued


	20. Chapter 20

Poe’s mother was already at Ben’s house, along with a couple other class parents, by the time the boys got there to change.  Poe was holding Ben’s hand, with a bag of casual clothes over his other shoulder, when they walked into the kitchen where Lizzie and Principal Organa were preparing food for the breakfast.  Poe flushed when Lizzie looked at their clasped hands.

“Hi, Mom,” Poe mumbled.

“How was the prom?” she asked.  “Did you have a good time?”

“Yeah.  We did.”  Poe smiled at her then glanced up at Ben, who flashed him a quick, small smile of his own.

“I’m going upstairs to change,” Ben muttered with a suspicious glance at his own mother, as if he were afraid she was going to start asking questions too.  He let go of Poe’s hand and started for the hall.  Poe was about to follow him when Lizzie stopped him.

“Poe, go put your suit in my car after you change,” she told him.  “You can ride home with me, so Ben won’t have to drive all the way to our house and back.”

“Oh. . . .”  Poe’s face fell; he had been looking forward to Ben taking him home, and particularly to a romantic goodnight kiss.  Principal Organa gave him a knowing look from where she was standing by the oven, keeping an eye on some sort of casserole.

“Lizzie, if Poe wants to spend the night, it wouldn’t be any trouble,” the principal offered.  “That way you won’t have to wait around until midnight if you want to get home sooner.”  Poe’s eyes widened, and he stared at Principal Organa, who actually winked at him behind Lizzie’s back.

“I don’t know, we don’t want to inconvenience you,” Lizzie hesitated.

Poe turned to her and begged, “Please, Mom?  I won’t get in the way, I promise.  We’ll stay upstairs all night.”  Too late, he realized that might not have been the best thing to say.

Sure enough, Lizzie gave him a skeptical look and replied, “I’m sure you will.  Poe’s never spent the night with a—a boyfriend before,” she said to Principal Organa.  “He’s never _had_ a boyfriend before, so this is all a little sudden.”

“Ugh, _Mom_ ,” Poe groaned as he felt his whole face get hot.  He was glad Ben had gone upstairs, but he didn’t want Lizzie talking to Ben’s mother about their relationship either.

“Neither has Ben,” Principal Organa reassured Lizzie, still smiling.  “But I feel better about him being here with Poe than sneaking out like he used to do.  You’ve done a good job of keeping him in line,” she added to Poe.  That didn’t exactly make him any less embarrassed, but he nodded hopefully.

“I suppose you have a point,” Lizzie sighed, finally smiling a bit herself.  “All right, Poe, you can spend the night as long as you behave yourself.”

“I will,” Poe promised.  “Thanks, Mom!”  He threw his arms around his mother and hugged her tight, then glanced over at the principal.  “Um, thanks, Principal Organa.”

“Go on and get changed,” she replied.  “And make sure Ben hangs up his suit so it doesn’t get destroyed before he returns it tomorrow.  He’s cost us enough money without losing our deposit on it, too.”

“Yes ma’am!” Poe promised before darting out of the kitchen and making for the stairs.  When he got up to Ben’s room, he found the door shut, so he knocked and called, “Ben?  It’s me.”

“Yeah, come in.  It’s not locked,” Ben said from within.  Poe went in and found Ben already out of his tuxedo and wearing a t-shirt and his boxers.

“Your mom said to hang that up,” Poe informed him with a critical look at the suit Ben had tossed on his bed.

“I’m sure she did,” Ben muttered.  He sighed and started putting the tuxedo back on the hanger he’d left on the floor earlier.

“She said something else too,” Poe went on, as casually as he could manage, while he took off his own jacket after carefully unpinning the boutonniere Ben had given him.  When Ben gave him an impatient look, Poe grinned.  “She said I could spend the night.”

“What?  _Really?_ ”  A smile spread over Ben’s face.  “Did—did you ask if you could?”

“No!  My mom said she would drive me home, so you didn’t have to—and then _your_ mom told her I could spend the night, and Mom finally agreed!”  Poe dropped his jacket so he could go to Ben and hug him tightly around the shoulders.

“Holy crap,” Ben mumbled.  “I never thought she’d let you—sure as hell didn’t think she’d _suggest_ it.”  He put his arms around Poe’s waist and held Poe against him.  “I’m really gonna get you for the whole night?”

“Yep.”  Poe pecked Ben on the lips and was about to pull away when Ben got hold of his hair and held his head to kiss him deeply.  “Mmpgh,” Poe moaned before he drew back reluctantly.  “Like you said, we’ve got all night, _amorcito_ —and we can’t get started doing that _now_.”

“I still wanna see you change,” Ben smirked.

“I didn’t get to see _you_ change,” Poe retorted.  “You got that shirt on awful fast.”

“You can see me without it later,” said Ben.  “But _you’re_ still wearing your dress shirt, and the pants. Take ‘em off.”

“You’re so bad,” Poe scolded him, but he pulled off his vest and tie, then unbuttoned his shirt and took it off.  Ben’s eyes stayed glued to Poe’s chest until the smaller boy started to remove his pants.

“Turn around,” Ben demanded.

“Hunh?”  Poe chuckled when he saw the expression on his boyfriend’s face.  “You want to look at my butt while I take my pants off?  You freakin’ perv.”

“What are you bitching for?” Ben retorted.  “You clearly have no problem showing off your ass.  And I promise I’ll keep my hands off it.  Until after the breakfast, anyway.”

“Fine,” Poe sighed, pretending to be put out.  Secretly, though, he loved knowing how excited he made Ben.  He faced away from his boyfriend and unbuttoned his pants, then slipped them down.  He’d worn boxer briefs that night since he thought regular boxers might bunch up under his dress pants, and he felt a little thrill of excitement when he heard the noise Ben made when he saw Poe’s backside.  Instead of pulling his jeans on right away, Poe took his time hanging up his tux, smirking all the while.

The plan backfired when Ben suddenly came up behind him and caught Poe around the waist.  Poe felt Ben rub up against his ass as he whispered in Poe’s ear.

“I want you to twerk for me again,” Ben murmured, “right now.  I want to feel your tight little ass all up on me.”

“Ben, everybody’s gonna be here in a moment,” Poe protested, even as his blood started pumping faster.

“Please, baby,” Ben breathed.  “Just for a second.”  Poe relented and rubbed his backside against Ben, then bent forward and flicked his ass up in a twerking motion.  Before he could pull away, Ben grabbed Poe’s hips and held him in place, then thrust against him hard.

“Oh God, Poe,” he hissed, “you feel so good.”  Poe was about to scold him again, but then Ben slid his arms up around Poe’s chest and pulled him close.  All of Poe’s protests melted away when he felt his boyfriend nuzzle his hair and kiss the side of his face.

“Ben. . . .”  Poe turned his head to brush Ben’s mouth with his own.  “I love you.”

“I love you too, rooster,” Ben whispered back.  He turned Poe in his arms and kissed him more thoroughly.  Then Ben groaned, “Shit,” and pulled away.

“What?” asked Poe, disappointed until he realized he’d better get his jeans on while he had a chance.

“Forgot about my eyeliner,” Ben muttered as he stalked to the bathroom.  “I gotta take it off before Mom sees it.”  While Poe was dressing, Ben ducked into the bathroom and came back with a bottle of baby oil and a handful of cotton balls.

“What’s that for?” Poe asked him.  “Taking your makeup off?”

“ _Eyeliner_ ,” Ben retorted.  “And yes.”  He tipped the bottle onto a cotton ball and looked in his dresser mirror as he rubbed it over his lower eyelid.  Poe was sorry to see the eyeliner go, but he didn’t really want his own mother noticing Ben’s makeup either.  When he was finished, Ben hurried to get the rest of his clothes on, then took Poe’s hand again before they went back downstairs.

Several other kids had already arrived and were scattered around the living room, which, Ben muttered to Poe, Principal Organa had cleared of breakable objects earlier that day.  The parents were still laying out food in the dining room—Poe marveled silently over the fact that Ben’s house actually had a separate dining room—so they sat down to wait, Ben sinking into a recliner that had to belong to his father, then pulling Poe down into his lap.  Poe felt like he melted a little inside as he snuggled against his boyfriend’s chest and Ben wrapped his arms around Poe’s smaller body.

“God, you two are nauseating,” muttered Rocket from where he was perched on one arm of Principal Organa’s leather sofa.  He and Groot, who was sitting on the sofa beside Rocket with his long legs stretched out, seemed to be the only members of Peter’s clique coming to the breakfast.

“Go to hell,” Ben retorted.  Rocket made an expressive face, then smirked when Poe scolded Ben.

“Be nice,” Poe told his boyfriend.  He grinned and added in a whisper, “He’s just jealous,” before planting a lingering kiss on Ben’s lips.  Ben let his eyes drop closed with a soft whimper, and Rocket made a gagging noise.

When Poe lifted his head again, Rey and Finn had arrived with most of the rest of the class.  Finn was looking around in amazement, and he glanced up at Ben when as he sat down with Rey on the floor near the recliner.

“Kylo, man, your house is awesome!” Finn exclaimed.

“Um, thanks,” Ben mumbled.  Poe saw his pale face redden slightly, but before Poe could think of a way to change the subject and spare Ben some embarrassment, Rey changed it for him.

“Look at that,” she hissed, nodding toward the doorway where Hux and Phasma had just come in, together.  “Guess they finally made up.”

Finn snorted, “I’m not surprised.  I don’t think anyone else would put up with either of them for long.  They’re lucky they found each other.”

“They don’t exactly look like they’re a _couple_ ,” Poe pointed out as the two sat down in straight-backed chairs that had been moved in to the living room for the occasion.  Phasma and Hux sat several inches apart, and although they spoke to one another from time to time, Poe through they still seemed rather stiff and awkward.

“Well, making up after a fight takes some time,” said Rey.  _Not always_ , Poe thought with a little smile, thinking of when he and Ben had first started painting the prom scenery together. _We went from not speaking to hugging in about one minute.  And I never want to fight with him again, not ever._   Poe knew that wasn’t exactly realistic, but at the moment, it seemed possible.  He leaned his head back on Ben’s shoulder, and his smile grew when he felt Ben’s cheek press against his hair as the larger boy held him.

\--

Neither of them noticed Ben’s mother looking in on them from the dining room.  Leia smiled as she turned back to the table, where Lizzie Dameron was carrying in the sausage and egg casserole that had just come out of the oven.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen Ben so happy before,” Leia said as the other woman set the casserole on the table.

“Hmm?”  Lizzie looked up, then walked past Leia to look through the open door.  “Oh.  Yes. . . Poe looks happy too.”  When she turned back, Leia was surprised by the serious look on the other woman’s face.  She didn’t know Lizzie that well—in fact, they’d only ever spoken casually in passing before that evening—but it was clear that something had Poe’s mother concerned.  Leia hesitated to ask her about it though; Han was always complaining that no one in Leia’s family knew how to mind their own business, her least of all.

“I think that’s everything,” Leia said instead.  “I’ll call the kids in, then we can retreat to the kitchen while they demolish all our hard work.”  Lizzie gave her a faint smile and withdrew, still looking distracted.  Leia summoned the gathered teenagers—some sleepy, a few grouchy, but most of them still excited and very hungry—then took shelter in the kitchen and prayed her dining room wouldn’t sustain too much damage.

While the other parents chatted over the coffee Leia had brewed for them, she kept an eye on Lizzie, who kept to herself and against the kitchen counter.  Finally, Leia decided that if there was some problem involving her son, she had a right to know about it.

Thus justifying her nosiness to herself, she went over to Lizzie and asked in a low voice, “Is everything all right?”

“Oh. . . yes, of course,” Lizzie nodded.  Leia was debating on whether she should push the issue or not when the other woman asked, “Why?”  Both her tone and her dark eyes—the same shade of brown as her son’s—conveyed an apprehension that concerned Leia even more than before.

“I just wanted to be sure Ben’s not causing you any problems,” Leia said with a feigned lightness.  “He’s been so much trouble for his father and me over the past few years, I don’t want him to be a bother to anyone else.”

Immediately, Lizzie reassured her, “Oh, no, not at all!  In fact, I’ve been surprised at—”  She broke off and gave Leia an embarrassed smile.  “Well, surprised at how polite and well-behaved he is.  I. . . suppose you can guess, I’ve. . . heard things.”  Leia couldn’t help laughing, and Lizzie relaxed.

“Yes, I can guess,” Leia sighed.  “But I’m glad to hear that he’s behaving himself.”  She paused, studying the other woman, then added, “I think Poe has been good for him.  Ben’s doing better in school, with both his grades and his behavior.  Of course he wouldn’t admit it, but I have a feeling he’s trying to impress Poe.”

“I hope—” Lizzie began; then again, she paused.  Leia waited, trying to be patient, until Lizzie finally continued, “I hope it will last, and that neither of them gets hurt.”  It was an oddly pessimistic thing to say, and Leia couldn’t let it go.

“Are you worried about that?” she asked.  “They seem to be getting along fine, to me. . . but then, Ben isn’t exactly forthcoming, and he doesn’t talk to us very much.  Is there something I should know?”  
  
“No.  No, it’s not that.  I’m. . . I’m just projecting my own insecurities, I guess.”  Lizzie sighed and looked down at her hands, clasped loosely in front of her.  “Because they _do_ seem so happy, I keep feeling as if. . . as if it couldn’t possibly last.  Poe’s so young, and he’s never been in a serious relationship before—and never one with another boy.  I’m afraid—” Abruptly, she looked up again and met Leia’s eyes.  “I’m not worried about Ben causing trouble, I’m worried about Poe hurting _him_.”

Leia was too startled to hide her reaction, and she stammered, “Why?  Poe is one of the nicest, sweetest boys in the entire school—and believe me, I’ve seen most of them at their best _and_ at their worst.  I know he wouldn’t ever want to hurt Ben.”

“I don’t think he would do it on purpose,” Lizzie murmured.  “But they’re so—they’re so wrapped up in each other.  So intense.  Poe hasn’t told me so, of course, but I know he thinks he’s in love with Ben, already.  But. . . he _can’t_ be, he can’t even know what love is yet.  They’re both so young. . . .”

As Lizzie trailed off, Leia wondered what else was behind her words.  She chose her own response carefully, not wanting to offend Lizzie but at the same time determined to vouch for their sons’ relationship.

“Yes, they’re young, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they can’t be in love,” Leia said.  “Or that it won’t last.  I don’t know, maybe it won’t—but I hope it does.”

Lizzie gave Leia a look that was almost beseeching.  “Truthfully?”

Leia nodded.  “Truthfully.  Lizzie, Poe is the best thing to happen to Ben in a long time.  He’s reached Ben in a way that Han and I can’t.  And I truly don’t believe that either of them is going to—I don’t know, get tired of the relationship, or of each other, or whatever it is you’re worried about.  I can’t think of anyone who would be better for Ben than Poe is.”

“I hope you’re right.”  Lizzie finally seemed to relax.  She still smiled only faintly, and she still looked a bit worried, but Leia thought that maybe some of her concerns had been eased.

Before Leia could reply, they were interrupted by Han coming home from an evening out with his buddies, entering through the door connecting the garage to the kitchen.

“I could hardly get the car in,” he grumbled to Leia.  “Kids don’t know how to park.  They all still here?”

“Yes!  I told you, they go home at midnight,” Leia retorted.  “Except for Poe, he’s spending the night with Ben.”

“He’s _what?_   You trust them enough?”  Han stared at her, and not for the first time, Leia wished she had a way of keeping her husband quiet.

“This is Poe’s mother, Lizzie Dameron,” Leia informed him, hoping the look she was giving him got the message across that she wanted him to shut up.  “Lizzie, this is Han.  My husband.”

“Hi,” Han said weakly, giving the other woman a glance that was suitably abashed.  “I, uh. . . it’s okay with you if Poe stays?”

Lizzie had visibly cringed when Han brought up the issue of trust, but now she nodded hesitantly.

“Yes, I. . . I think it’s all right,” she muttered.  “If Poe is any trouble, just call me and I’ll come get him.  It doesn’t matter how late it is.”

“He won’t be any trouble,” Leia said, giving Han another sharp look.

“Right,” Han sighed.  “It’ll be fine.  Leia, is there any food left?  It sure smells good.”

Leia shook her head but smiled all the same.  At least Han couldn’t say anything embarrassing while he was eating.

“If there’s anything left in the dining room, help yourself,” she told him.

“Great!”  Looking rather more cheerful, Han mumbled, “Nice to meet you,” to Lizzie then crossed the kitchen to the dining room.  Leia followed him to survey the damage and start cleaning up the leftover food.  Han scooped up a handful of bacon and was shoving it into his mouth as he stuck his head in the living room.  Immediately, Leia heard a scandalized cry from their son.

“ _Dad!_   Get out of here!  _God,_ you’re so embarrassing!”

“Geez,” poor Han mumbled as he drew back.  “Next time you let all these kids in here, put up some signs or something, so I know where I’m not allowed to go.”

“You’d better just go on to bed,” Leia warned him with a chuckle.  “You can help me clean up the living room in the morning.”

Lizzie had come into the dining room behind Leia, and she asked, “Are you sure you don’t need more help?  I could stay a while.”

“No, it’s fine.”  Leia handed her the dish Lizzie had brought, now empty.  “I know you’re ready to get home and have the rest of the night to yourself without any kids around.”

Lizzie gave her another little smile.  “To be honest, the house is going to feel pretty empty with B.B. _and_ Poe gone.  But getting to sleep late in the morning will be nice.”

“Does Ben need to bring Poe home by a specific time?” asked Leia.

“No, as long as Poe remembers to take his tuxedo back before the shop closes tomorrow evening.  He never put it in the car, so it’s on him now,” Lizzie observed.  “And he said they’re supposed to go clean up the gym in the afternoon, so. . . if he won’t be in the way, he might as well spend the day with Ben tomorrow,” she finished with a sigh.  “I know he’ll like that.”

“So will Ben,” Han muttered.  “I thought the kid had forgotten how to smile until this whole thing with Poe started.”  Lizzie blinked at him; then she smiled, a little wider than before.

“I’ll make sure they return their suits on their way to school,” Leia promised.  “Go on home—and don’t worry.  They’ll be fine.”  She wasn’t just talking about that night, and from the way Lizzie studied her, she thought Lizzie knew it.

“All right,” the other woman said.  “I’ll trust you on that.”  She glanced at the doorway into the living room and added, “I’d go tell Poe good night, but I think I’d better keep my distance if I don’t want to get yelled at.”

Han sighed, “Probably a good idea.”

“Good night,” Lizzie told Leia.  “And thanks for letting Poe stay.”

Leia nodded and said, “You’re welcome.”

\--

To be continued


	21. Chapter 21

As Hux drove Phasma home from Kylo’s house after the breakfast, neither of them said much.  Phasma sat stiffly in the passenger seat of Hux’s red sports car and looked out the window at the dark streets and the islands of light cast by the streetlamps they passed.

_I need to talk to him,_ she told herself, but she had no idea what she was supposed to say.

When Hux pulled up into her driveway, she surprised herself by turning to him and asking, “Do you want to come in?”  Hux blinked, and his eyes flicked down to the dashboard clock.

“It’s after midnight,” he said.  “Your parents won’t get mad?”

“I’m sure they’re in bed already.”  Phasma glanced at the dark house, then back at Hux.  “If you don’t want to, it’s fine.  I just thought—never mind.”  She unbuckled her seat belt and opened the car door, cursing herself silently. . . but then Hux unbuckled his belt too and got out with her.

“No, I’ll come in,” he muttered.

“You won’t get in trouble with your dad for coming home late, will you?” Phasma asked as they walked to the front door and she fumbled to unlock it in the dark.

“Dad doesn’t care, you know that.”  Hux shoved his hands in his pockets and followed her in when she finally got the door unlocked.  Phasma shut and relocked it as quietly as she could; then they sneaked to her room at the back of the house.  It wasn’t until they got there that she realized how hard her heart was pounding and wondered just what the hell she was doing.  Hux had been to her house plenty of times before—for that matter, they had been alone in her room plenty of times before—but Phasma felt like she was treading on very uncertain ground after the upheaval of the past few weeks.

To change the subject in her own mind, she murmured, “I can’t believe it’s all over,” once they were in her room with the door shut and the lamp on her bedside turned on to its lowest setting.

“You can’t believe that what’s all over?” Hux asked.  He glanced around her orderly bedroom until she sat down on the edge of the bed, up near her pillows.  Then Hux sat near the foot of the bed and looked at her.

“The prom,” she said.  “It’s been all I’ve thought about for weeks—all the planning and organizing and everything.  And now it’s all done, except for cleaning up tomorrow.  I guess I’m glad, because now I can get back to. . . .”  She trailed off, wondering just _what_ she had to get back to.

“Back to micromanaging everything else?” Hux suggested.  Phasma glared at him until she realized he was smiling, a little.

“Yeah, I guess so,” she sighed.  “You realize a year from now we’ll be about to graduate?  I haven’t even finished applying to all the colleges I want to yet, and there’s still so much to—”

“Phasma,” Hux interrupted her, “you didn’t ask me to come in so we could talk about _that_.”

Phasma had to force herself to meet his steady gaze when she answered, “No, I guess I didn’t.  We. . . we need to talk.  But I don’t want to.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t—I don’t know what to say!” she groaned.  “Do you?  I mean. . . I _hate_ talking about feelings.  _You_ hate talking about feelings.”  Phasma looked down at her bedspread and muttered, “I wish I didn’t have to feel anything at all.”

“So do I.”  She hadn’t expected Hux to agree with her, and she was even more surprised when he went on, “When all you feel are bad things, and all anyone feels _about_ you are bad things. . . not feeling anything starts sounding _good_.”

When Phasma lifted her head, Hux was looking away from her, out into the room somewhere.  Very rarely did any emotion show on his face, but at that moment, he looked desolate.

“Hux,” Phasma murmured, “ _I_ don’t feel bad things about you.  Yeah, I got really pissed off at you, but. . . that was as much my fault as it was yours.  I like you, I really do.”

“Thanks.”  Hux didn’t sound convinced, and she tried again.

“You’re my best friend.  I’m sorry I screwed that up.”

“You shouldn’t be sorry,” Hux told her.  “And you didn’t screw it up.  We’re still friends.  I shouldn’t have—”  He stopped, and he still hadn’t looked at her again.

“You shouldn’t have _what?_ ” Phasma insisted on knowing.

“I shouldn’t have assumed we were anything more than that,” said Hux, carefully.  He had regulated his expression, but he spoke as if he might break at any moment.  “You’re right, I took you for granted.  And I took it for granted that you didn’t want anyone else.”

Phasma opened and shut her mouth twice before she could make any words come out.

“I. . . I _don’t_.  Want anyone else, I mean.  But—but we’ve never even talked about—we’ve never even kissed or _anything_.”  Phasma reached back to run her hand over her ponytail, the usual gesture she made to calm herself, only to remember that she was still wearing her hair up.  She dropped her hand uselessly into her lap and muttered, “You’ve never said _anything_ about wanting us to be together.”

Hux finally looked at her then and said, “Neither have you.  So do you?”

“Do I what?”  She was stalling, and she knew he knew it.

“Do you want us to be together?”

Whenever she had to make a decision, Phasma considered every option.  Now, in choosing how to respond, she thought of every possible answer she could give him: “No.”  “I don’t know.”  “Why, do you?” “I don’t have time for this.  None of this matters.  This isn’t real life.  I won’t start living until—”

_I won’t start living until when?_ Phasma asked herself.  _Until when?_

“Yes,” she told Hux in a small voice.

“Me too,” he said.  They sat there looking at each other, until Phasma realized that if she waited for Hux to make the first move, she’d be waiting forever.  She leaned forward, having to stretch across most of the bed to reach him, and kissed him—not hard or deep, not even opening her mouth, but even just touching her lips to Hux’s was revolutionary enough.

When Phasma started to draw back, Hux put his hands on her upper arms and pulled her closer to kiss her again.  This time, he parted his lips and after a second of blind panic, Phasma did the same.  She slid over next to Hux and put her arms loosely around his shoulders as they kissed; then he stunned her by wrapping his own arms around her waist and holding her to him.

_He really does want me,_ Phasma thought with some amazement.  _Even after all the time we’ve spent together, I never realized it. . . ._

“Phasma,” Hux murmured when they finally broke the kiss to catch their breath.

“Yeah,” she whispered back.

“Just so we’re clear about it—I want you to be my girlfriend.  Will you?”  It was a direct and unromantic question, but Phasma decided Hux wouldn’t be Hux if he acted any other way—and she liked him exactly the way he was.

“Yeah,” she whispered again.

\--

Poe enjoyed the breakfast at first, but after a while, he was ready for it to be over so that he and Ben could be alone.  After what felt like hours, the other kids started leaving, and eventually, midnight arrived.  Rey and Finn were among the last to go, and Poe walked outside with them.

“You seem pretty happy, Poe,” Rey observed.  “I guess you and Ben have had a good night?”

“Yeah,” Poe grinned.  He was tempted to tell them about his and Ben’s professions of love, but then Poe decided that he wanted to keep those to himself.  He ended up just saying, “We’ve had a lot of fun.  What about you guys?”

“Oh yeah, prom was awesome!” Finn declared, and Rey nodded.

“Yeah.  I had a good time.”  She smiled at Poe, who chuckled.

“Even though Finn blinded you with that gold tie?”

“My tie was cool, Poe,” retorted Finn.  “You just don’t have a sense of style.”

Rey groaned, “Never mind about the tie.  Come on and take me home, I’m tired.  We have a lot to clean up tomorrow afternoon, so I want to get some sleep.”

Poe told them good night, and it wasn’t until they started walking to Finn’s car that he noticed they were holding hands.  He took a minute to ponder that startling development, then turned and went back inside to look for Ben.  Principal Organa had put him to work helping her finish clearing the table, and he complained as Poe came to help.

“I’m tired, and I want to go to bed,” Ben muttered as they carried the last of the dishes into the kitchen.

After making sure no adults were around, Poe teased him, “I’m spending the night with you, and all you want to do is go to bed?”

“I meant, go to bed with _you_ , duh.”  Ben shoved the dishes into the dishwasher, then turned to give Poe a kiss after he closed it.

“You still shouldn’t complain,” Poe scolded him—after enjoying the kiss.  “Your parents were really nice to let us all come here, especially your mom for fixing all that food.  The least we can do is help clean up.”

“Tomorrow,” groaned Ben.  “We’ll finish cleaning up tomorrow.  Right now. . . .”  He dropped his voice to a whisper as he nuzzled Poe’s ear.  “I want to be alone with you.”

Once Ben had muttered a reluctant good night to his parents, and Poe had thanked them once again for everything, the boys escaped upstairs to Ben’s room.  As Ben locked the door behind them, Poe kicked off his shoes and stretched.

“I’m glad we didn’t go to the after-party,” he said.  “No one I really like was going, and I don’t like that kind of stuff, anyway.”

“What kind of stuff?”  Ben sat on the edge of the bed to take off his shoes as well.

“Uh, you know. . . _partying._   Drinking, smoking, that kind of thing.  I guess I really am a dork,” Poe finished, feeling somewhat abashed about it.

“No, you’re not,” Ben said, getting up again.  “I mean. . . like, if this was a year ago. . . I might have gone.  I did stuff like that back then, sometimes.”

“Oh.”  Poe felt bad for bringing it up at all, although he probably could have guessed that Ben had done things Poe considered to be terribly bad.  “Um, I didn’t think about it, but. . . did you _want_ to go? I didn’t even ask, I’m sorry.”

“No, I didn’t want to, that’s not what I meant,” Ben protested.  “I just meant—back then, I didn’t have anything else worth doing.  Plus that kind of thing pissed my parents off, so that made me want to do it more.  But I never really enjoyed myself, especially not being alone.”  He came back over to Poe and put his hands on the smaller boy’s shoulders.  “Now that I have you, I don’t want to be anywhere else, or with anyone else.  I don’t want anything to distract me from. . . from my life, I guess, because now _you’re_ in my life.”  He pulled Poe to him and hugged him tightly.

“Ben,” Poe mumbled into his boyfriend’s shirt.  “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be, either, than with you.”

After a minute, Ben let him go to finish getting ready for bed, without saying anything more.  He gave Poe a new toothbrush he found in the bottom of the drawer—“The dentist always gives me a billion of these things,” Ben muttered—and let Poe use his toothpaste.  Poe found that gesture to be awfully romantic, although he didn’t say so to Ben for fear Ben would find it silly.  But doing something so ordinary as standing at the sink together and brushing their teeth at the same time felt nice.

_This must be what it’s like to live together,_ Poe thought happily as he rinsed his mouth out.  _Or to be married._

But once he was back in Ben’s room, waiting by the side of the bed, Poe started feeling nervous.  He stood fidgeting as Ben turned off all the lights save for a nightlight in his bathroom, then came to stand on the opposite side of the bed from Poe.

“Um, I guess we should get undressed,” Poe finally said.  Ben nodded, then studied Poe’s face in the dim light.

“Poe, you know we. . . we don’t have to do anything,” he murmured.  “We can just go to bed if you don’t want to—make out or anything.”  The look of concern he gave Poe made the smaller boy smile, and Poe relaxed.

“I know,” he told Ben.  “I still wanna get undressed though.”

“You do, hunh?  And you were calling _me_ a perv a little while ago.”  Ben smirked, then half turned away from Poe to pull off his t-shirt.  Poe did the same and took off his jeans.  When they were both down to their underwear, Poe eyed Ben from across the bed, until Ben finally turned back to him.  Now Ben was the one who looked nervous, and he rubbed one arm with the opposite hand as if he were fighting the urge to cover his chest.

“Shorts too?” he asked.

“I dunno.”  Poe grinned at him.  “What do you think?”

“Maybe not just yet,” Ben muttered.  He pulled the sheets back on his bed and got in; Poe scrambled in on the other side.  He pressed close to Ben as they lay down, and Ben wrapped his arms around Poe and pulled the smaller boy to his chest.

“Poe, did you really have a good time tonight?” Ben whispered.

“Yeah, I did, really.”  Poe hugged him tightly and nuzzled his neck.  “Best time I’ve ever had.  I love being with you anytime, but on a special night, with everybody watching us. . . it was awesome.”

“Yeah,” Ben agreed.  He had put his hand to Poe’s hair and was stroking it as he held him.  “It was the best time I ever had too.”  Ben bent his head down to kiss Poe gently, with his mouth closed; then he murmured, “I never thought I’d be with you, _never_.  I’d see you hanging out with your friends, and you always looked so happy.  I wanted so bad to be there with you, and to have you smile at _me_ like that, but I thought. . . .”  He broke off and tightened his hold on Poe before whispering, “I thought I’d never be someone you could want.”

“Ben. . . .”  Poe tilted his head up to kiss Ben’s face, all over.  “I felt the same way about you.  I liked you for years, but I thought you were way too cool to ever be interested in _me_.”  He wriggled up to lie face-to-face with Ben, with their heads beside each other on the same pillow.  “But we were both wrong, weren’t we?  And now I think we’re perfect for each other.”

“Yeah.”  Ben smiled, losing the almost painfully intense expression he’d had.  “We are.”  He caught Poe’s lips with his and kissed him again, open-mouthed this time.  Poe kissed him back, all nervousness now forgotten.  After a moment of kissing, Ben moved one hand to Poe’s chest and rubbed it a second before sliding it down to his stomach.  Poe felt his abdomen tense with anticipation.

“Go on,” he whispered, “touch me.”

Finally, Ben’s hand moved to his groin and began to rub him through his shorts.  Poe pushed back against it with a whimper.

“Does that feel good?” Ben murmured, smiling since he knew the answer.  He slid his hand down even farther to rub Poe’s growing erection with the heel of his hand and cup his balls in his fingers.

“Mm, Ben,” Poe breathed.  “Yeah, it’s really good.  I’ve been wanting all night for you to touch me.”

Ben pointed out, “I kept trying, and you kept telling me no.  But now you want it, hunh, rooster?  You want me to jerk you off?”

“I want more than that,” hissed Poe.  Ben’s motions faltered for a moment, and Poe took the opportunity to shove his own hand between them and grope his boyfriend in return.  “Feels like you want it too, stork.”

“Yeah,” Ben admitted, having lost most of his bravado the second Poe started fondling him.  With a hint of desperation in his voice, he asked, “Poe, please, can I take your shorts off?  I want to see you, all of you.”

Poe nodded.  “Yeah, okay.”  Ben’s fingers immediately went to the waistband of his underwear and tugged it down, freeing Poe’s erection.  Poe drew in his breath with the sense of relief that brought, and he expected Ben to start touching him again.  Instead, Ben pulled Poe’s underwear all the way down his legs and off, then sat up and just looked at Poe’s body.

“What?  What’re you staring at?” Poe demanded, trying to sound playful although he could feel himself blushing hard, even down his neck.  Although Ben had seen every part of him at one time or another, the boys had never been completely naked in front of each other before.

“You,” Ben whispered hoarsely.  “You’re so hot, Poe.”  He reached out a hand and laid it on Poe’s thigh, as if he were afraid to touch it.  Finally, Ben’s other hand joined it, closing over Poe’s opposite thigh, and Ben slid them both upwards.  Poe shivered and spread his legs a little without even thinking about it.  Ben breathed, “Fuck, you’re gorgeous.  So damn gorgeous.”

“Ben. . . .”  Poe couldn’t think of anything to say besides that.  His embarrassment was turning back to pleasure at Ben’s praise of him; Poe had never imagined that he could have such an effect on anyone, much less someone he found equally attractive.  After a moment, he managed to ask, “Can. . . can I see you too?”

Ben swallowed hard—Poe actually heard it—but then nodded and muttered, “Yeah.”  He raised up on his knees and pulled his boxers down, then sat again and lifted his legs to slip out of them and toss them on the floor.  If they had been any other piece of clothing, Poe would have teased Ben about making a mess, but just then he didn’t even think about it.  He looked over at Ben, now sitting about a foot away with his legs out in front of him and looking back.

“You’re gorgeous too,” Poe told him.  Ben gave his head a little shake no, but Poe didn’t feel like arguing, even about that.  Instead, he added with a slight grin, “Gorgeous and really hard.”

“You have that effect on me—” Ben began, but he broke off in a gasp when Poe sat up and slid his hand between Ben’s legs to stroke him.  A second later, Ben’s hand closed over Poe and groped him at the same time.  They fondled each other for several moments, inching closer together until Ben wrapped his free arm around Poe’s shoulders and pulled him in for a hard, deep kiss.  After that, Poe slid back up to the head of the bed and lay back, still looking up at Ben.

“Lie down with me,” Poe whispered.  “I, um—I want to feel you on me.”  Ben nodded and crawled over to lean over Poe, straddling him, then lowered himself to lie on top of the smaller boy.  They started kissing again, hands in each other’s hair, as they slowly rubbed their naked bodies together.  Poe heard himself make a pleased little whimpering noise without meaning to do it.

“This feels so good,” Ben hissed when he lifted his mouth away from Poe’s.  He was thrusting his hips down a little faster and harder to grind himself against Poe.  “I—I wanna come all over you!”  Poe blushed all over again, but at the same time, he thought he got a little harder just from hearing Ben say it.

“Don’t come yet,” he protested.  “I don’t want it to be over that fast.”

Ben gave a breathy, strained laugh.  “I’m not, I’m not.  I just love how you feel, baby.”

“I love how you feel too,” Poe told him.  He moved his hands from Ben’s hair to the larger boy’s back, then slid them down over Ben’s smooth, cool skin.  “ _Amorcito,_ ” Poe added in a whisper when his hands reached Ben’s ass and gripped it.

“ _Te quiero_ ,” Ben whispered back.  His intonation wasn’t that great, but Poe loved hearing the words in his deep voice anyway.

“ _Te quiero_.”  Poe looked up into Ben’s eyes, just barely visible in what little light reached into the room.  Ben brushed Poe’s hair back from his forehead and bent his head to kiss it.  It was a calm, quiet kiss compared to what they had been doing, but it made Poe feel loved.

Ben shifted and started rubbing against Poe again, more slowly this time.  Poe rocked his hips up to thrust against the larger boy until Ben was moaning.

“Oh God, Poe, that’s so good.  I’ve been hard for you all night.”

“Tell me what you want me to do to you,” Poe whispered to him as Ben writhed on top of him.  “Tell me how you—you want me to make you come.”  He was fully prepared for the answer to be that Ben wanted to go all the way, and even though the idea still made him a little apprehensive, Poe was willing to do it for Ben’s sake.

But instead, Ben asked him in a hoarse murmur, “Would—would you suck me off?”

“Yeah,” Poe breathed.  “Are—are you sure?  That’s what you want?”

“Yeah—but only if you want to do it.  If you don’t, tell me.”  Ben had stopped grinding on Poe to look down at him with some concern.  “I. . . I guess it’s kind of gross, so if you don’t—”

“No, no, I’ll do it,” Poe assured him with a little smile.  “I just thought. . . after you talking about my ass all night, I thought you were gonna say you wanted to—um, to fuck me,” he finished in a low voice.

“Not yet,” Ben whispered.  He rested his forehead against Poe’s and went on, their lips brushing as they spoke.  “I mean, I _do_ want to, but not yet.  Like, I think we should be together longer first, so that. . . so that it’s really special, and we both really want it.”  Poe’s breath caught, and he wondered for a moment at how Ben seemed to have read his mind.

Ben continued, “And anyway, I really, _really_ want you to blow me.”  He kissed Poe’s mouth wetly, rubbing his tongue over it and moistening it with his saliva.  “I keep looking at your pretty lips and thinking about them wrapped around my cock.”

“God, Ben, you talk so dirty sometimes,” Poe murmured—even as Ben’s words made him stiffen a little more.  Ben evidently felt it, and he chuckled.

“And you love it, don’t you, baby?”  He abruptly rolled off of Poe and leaned up against the pillows.  “I’ll tell you all the dirty things you want to hear while you’re sucking me.”

Poe shifted over to lie between Ben’s legs and looked up at him.  Despite Ben’s talk, he looked pretty nervous as well as excited—as nervous and excited as Poe felt.

“I probably won’t be very good at this,” Poe apologized.  “I. . . don’t really know how to do it, so tell me if—if I do something wrong.”

“You’re sure you want to?” whispered Ben.  “Never mind what I said, you don’t have to—oh _God_ , Poe!”  He broke off in a gasp when Poe gripped the base of his erection and licked it.  Poe decided he was doing something _right_ and kept going.  After a minute, he started sucking instead, and Ben gave a low groan of encouragement.

“Fuck, Poe, th-that’s so good,” he moaned, and Poe could feel him tremble.  “Suck it, suck my cock!”

To Poe’s surprise, he liked what he was doing too: he liked knowing how good he could make Ben feel, and he liked the way Ben’s cock felt and even tasted.  He could only get about half of it in his mouth without feeling too uncomfortable, but Ben didn’t seem to have any complaints about what Poe was doing.  With his hand, Poe pumped what he couldn’t suck on, and what he was doing turned him on too, to the point where he was squirming on the bed and fighting the urge to touch himself at the same time.   Ben’s hips twitched, and Poe realized he was trying to hold himself back from thrusting up too hard.  Poe raised his eyes to give Ben a grateful look through his eyelashes, and Ben stared back down at him with another moan.

“Oh God, Poe, _Poe_. . . .”  Ben raked the fingers of one hand through Poe’s hair then held his head and pushed up slightly into his mouth.  Poe made a muffled sound in response and sucked as hard as he could, even though his jaw was starting to ache from how he was having to hold it open.  Ben watched him all the while—too enraptured to say anything, despite what he’d promised—until he winced and shuddered.

At first Poe thought he had hurt Ben, maybe with his teeth, but a second later, Ben gasped, “Poe, I’m—I’m close.  If you don’t pull off, I’m gonna come in your mouth.”  Poe almost did draw back, but then he realized he _wanted_ Ben to come in his mouth, and he sucked all the harder and rubbed the underside of Ben’s shaft with his tongue.  Ben cried out and stiffened in Poe’s mouth; then his fingers clenched tight in Poe’s hair as he climaxed.

Ben came faster, harder, and more than Poe was expecting, and he had to pull off a second later to keep from choking.  He swallowed without a second thought—it just seemed like the natural thing to do—and kept pumping Ben with his hand, now using fuller strokes.  Ben groaned Poe’s name as he finished coming, his final couple shots hitting Poe in the cheek.

Ben slumped back on the pillows when he was through, also loosening his hold on Poe’s hair and flexing his fingers.  He looked down at Poe, who was breathing hard and more turned on than he’d ever been before in his life.

“Fuck,” said Ben.  “Poe, that. . . that was so.  Fucking.  Hot.”  He laughed weakly.  “And you’re fucking hot with my cum on your face.”  Ben leaned down to pick his shorts up off the floor and wiped Poe’s cheek off with them.

“I swallowed some too,” Poe pointed out, and Ben gave him a look of adoration and amazement.

“R-really?  Was it—was it really gross?”

“Nunh unh.”  Poe shook his head and grinned.  “I liked it.”

“Oh shit, Poe, you’re—you’re perfect.  You’re _perfect_.”  Ben leaned forward and pulled Poe into his arms, then started kissing him.  When Ben lay back and drew Poe down with him, Poe rubbed up against him until Ben pushed his hand between them to grope Poe’s erection.

“Do you want me to do it to you, too?” Ben whispered.

“Yeah,” Poe murmured.  He pushed into Ben’s hand as another idea occurred to him and he struggled with whether or not he should suggest it.  After Ben kissed him again and gently pushed Poe down on his back, Poe mumbled, “Um, could you—” then faltered and said, “Never mind,” instead.

“What, baby?” Ben asked him.  He had started to kiss his way down Poe’s chest, but he paused and looked back up at the smaller boy.  “I’ll do anything you want me to, anything.”

Poe looked away and muttered in a rush, “Could you finger me at the same time?”

“Fuck,” Ben breathed, “fuck _yeah_.”  Poe glanced at him again shyly to see Ben grinning at him as he asked, “Have you ever done that before?  To yourself, I mean?”

Poe was already blushing, but his face felt as if it had caught fire as he stammered, “A-a little.  Just to, um, to see what it felt like.”

“And you liked it?” Ben prompted.  “You thought about me touching you like that?”

“Y-yeah.”  Part of Poe regretted even bringing it up, but the other part of him was getting even more turned on answering Ben’s questions.

“Just a second,” Ben said as he sat up, then got off the bed.  Poe couldn’t figure out what he was doing until he grabbed the bottle of baby oil he’d used to remove his eyeliner and practically jumped back in bed.

“Bet this’ll make it feel even better,” he told Poe.  Caught somewhere between shame and arousal, Poe could only bite his lip and nod.

But maybe Ben had been fantasizing about the same things Poe had, because he certainly seemed to have a plan.  He had Poe bend his legs at the knee and draw them up, spreading them at the same time.  Ben lay between them and looked up at Poe’s embarrassed face before he grasped Poe’s erection in his left hand and started licking it.

“Nngh, Ben,” Poe moaned, flexing his hips up involuntarily.

“You taste really good,” Ben murmured.  He covered the head with his mouth and sucked on it, and Poe nearly squealed.

“Oh God, oh _God_ ,” he gasped.  He heard Ben chuckle, then felt his boyfriend’s hot mouth engulfing more of him.  Poe hadn’t realized anything could ever feel so good, and he groaned in disappointment when Ben stopped a moment later.

“Stop whining, rooster, I’ll give you more in a moment,” Ben scolded him.  “But you wanted something else too, remember?”  He let go of Poe to unscrew the cap on the bottle of oil and stuck the middle of finger of his right hand down inside it.  Poe got embarrassed all over again and closed his eyes.  He heard Ben moving around on the bed, maybe putting the bottle aside where it wouldn’t get spilled; then he felt Ben’s hands on him, pushing his legs a little further apart.  Poe flinched, and Ben whispered to him, “Relax, baby.  You’re sure you want me to do this?”

“Y-yeah, I’m just—I’m really embarrassed,” Poe muttered.  “To want something so—so dirty.”

“I want it too,” whispered Ben.  “I’ve been thinking about your hot little ass all night.  And—and I’ve done it to myself too, before.”

“You have, really?”  Poe finally opened his eyes again and looked down at Ben between his thighs.

“Yeah.  And I know how to make it feel really good.”  Ben smiled at him—a tenderer smile than his earlier grin—then rubbed the tip of his finger against Poe to smear the oil around.  “Ready, baby?”

“Y-yeah.”  Poe clenched up anyway when Ben pushed the fingertip into him, but then he was able to relax.  Ben waited a second, then slid his finger in deeper.  It didn’t hurt at all—in fact, it felt good, even better than what Poe had tried on his own since Ben was the one doing it.  Poe had fantasized about Ben’s long fingers more than a few times, and he liked it even more than he thought he would.

When Ben asked, “You okay?” Poe breathed, “Yes!  Put it in all the way, please!”  He heard Ben swear under his breath as he thrust his finger in as deep as he could go.

“You’re right, it feels good,” Poe whispered.

“Good.”  Ben drew his finger back and pushed it in again, then repeated the motion faster.  “God, you’re so fucking tight,” he hissed.  He moved his finger inside Poe, twisting it a little.  Poe gasped, then yelped with pleasure when Ben rubbed him a certain way.

“There!” Ben declared with a note of triumph in his voice.  He did it again, then _again_ , and Poe arched his back, feeling like he was about to start coming any second.

“Ben, _Ben!_ ” he groaned.

“I told you I’d make you feel good.”  Ben let up on the spot and started sliding his finger in and out again, then leaned over and took Poe’s erection back in his mouth.  He kept fingering Poe as he sucked, and Poe could do little more than lie back and tremble as Ben made him feel better than he’d imagined possible.  Ben was able to go down on him farther than Poe had, but he lifted his head sooner, shifting his jaw so that it popped.

“Ow,” he muttered, then smiled again when he looked up at the blissful expression on Poe’s face.  “You want me to do you with two fingers now, baby?”

“Y-yeah,” Poe managed to whimper.  He felt Ben’s middle finger slip out of him, then a second later, greater pressure as Ben pushed it back in to the first knuckle along with his pointer finger.  Poe tensed briefly at the stretching sensation, but right away he wanted both fingers all the way in.

“Go on, more,” he demanded.  Ben smirked as he pushed his fingers in deep.

“You love it, don’t you?” whispered Ben.  He thrust his fingers in and out a few times, then twisted them from side to side, making Poe gasp with pleasure.  “You love feeling me play with your ass. . . and suck your hard cock,” he added, leaning down to do just that.

Poe was hardly aware of what he was saying when he answered, “Y-yeah, I love it.  Fuck me harder, please!”  Ben made a growling sound around Poe’s erection and started finger fucking Poe faster, as deep as he could go.  Poe groaned incoherent encouragement and writhed on the bed, wanting to thrust up into Ben’s mouth and back against his hand at the same time.  Then Ben pushed upwards with his fingertips to rub the spot that set off fireworks inside Poe, and Poe cried out in ecstasy.

“Oh _fuck_ , Ben, I’m gonna come, I feel like I’m gonna come,” he babbled, vaguely aware that he should warn Ben before coming in his mouth.  Ben either didn’t hear or didn’t care, though, because he just worked his fingers inside Poe and sucked him all the harder.  Poe bucked his hips up hard when he came, simultaneously shooting into Ben’s mouth and clamping down around his fingers.  Poe wasn’t aware of anything except the waves of pleasure washing through him, but as he finished, he realized that Ben still had his lips around Poe’s shaft.  Only when Poe’s climax was over, Ben slowly withdrew his fingers and sat up, breathing heavily.

“Ben. . . .”  Poe’s voice was little more than an exhausted squeak.  He hoisted himself up on his elbows and looked at his boyfriend.  “You. . . you’re wonderful.  Did—did you swallow it?   _All_ of it?”

“Yeah.”  Ben somehow looked both proud of himself and embarrassed at the same time.  “I didn’t want to stop blowing you—I wanted you to feel good.”

“I did.  I felt _really_ good.”  Poe struggled to sit up then leaned over and wrapped his arms around Ben.  “I’ve never felt better, _ever_.”

They got up—Poe a bit shakily—and went to clean up in the bathroom.  On Poe’s suggestion, they brushed their teeth again too before crawling back in bed, pretty much exhausted.  Ben put his arms around Poe and held the smaller boy close as he pulled the sheets up over them both.  Poe craned his neck to kiss his boyfriend a final time before pressing his head to Ben’s shoulder and closing his eyes.

“Ben, I love you,” Poe whispered.  “I want to be with you forever.”

“So do I,” Ben whispered back, “because I love you too, and I always will.  I promise.”

Poe fell asleep that night without thinking anything an adult might think—that such a promise was unrealistic, or that nobody could truly know what the future would bring for them.  Instead, Poe believed what Ben said, just like he believed that he’d always love Ben, too.  He believed both things with all his heart.

\--

To be continued


	22. Chapter 22

The whole thing was really Ben’s fault, he supposed, since it was his idea to show B.B. _The Nightmare Before Christmas._   Even though Ben and Poe had been together for almost eight months, Poe’s little brother still hadn’t really warmed up to Ben, and Ben thought maybe a Halloween movie night with Poe and B.B. around the start of October would get him into the kid’s good graces.  So one Friday night when the air was just starting to turn cool and the back-to-school displays in the stores had changed to racks of Halloween costumes and candy, Ben brought his Blu-ray of the movie over to Poe’s house.  The three of them sat on the sofa in Poe’s living room, Poe in the middle with Ben on one side of him and B.B. on the other, and a large bowl of popcorn on Poe’s lap.

Normally, Ben would have resented sharing Poe with anyone, even Poe’s own little brother, but the situation was tolerable since they were watching one of Ben’s favorite movies, _and_ since he could grope the side of Poe’s thigh under the cover of the popcorn bowl.  Poe swatted his hand away at first, and Ben gave up and got engrossed in the movie. . . but then, halfway through, Poe grabbed Ben’s hand and put it back on his thigh.  Being more interested in feeling up his boyfriend than in seeing Jack Skellington save Christmas for the billionth time, Ben didn’t complain.

As for Ben’s plan to get on B.B.’s good side, it worked. . . sort of.  True, the movie enthralled B.B., and after it was over, he stared at Ben and breathed, “That was awesome.”  Ben yanked his hand out of B.B.’s brother’s lap and nodded.

“Yeah, glad you liked it,” he muttered.

“Can we watch it again?” asked B.B.

 _Shit_ , thought Ben, who had big plans for what he was going to do to Poe as soon as they were alone in Poe’s room.

Thankfully, Poe replied, “It’s already past your bedtime, buddy.  Go say good night to Mom,” and ignored his brother’s complaints.  B.B. sighed and trudged off to Mrs. Dameron’s room, and Ben leaned over to kiss Poe.  The fact that Poe tasted like popcorn and Coke didn’t bother Ben in the least.

“Mmpgh,” said Poe around Ben’s tongue.  He set the popcorn bowl, empty except for a few unpopped kernels, on the coffee table then put both hands in Ben’s hair and kissed him back.  When Poe sat back, he was smiling at Ben in the way he did when he was especially happy, and Ben decided the couple hours spent with B.B. had been worthwhile since they’d earned him that perfect smile.

“Thank you,” Poe murmured.  “B.B. really did like the movie, and Mom pretty much thinks you hung the moon for giving her an evening off.”

“No problem,” Ben told him, with as much casualness as he could muster.  “The real question is, what do _you_ think, rooster?”  Poe still had his hands in Ben’s hair, and he stroked his fingers through it as he replied.

“I think you’d better finish what you started, groping me like that.  Get your movie out before you forget it, then let’s go to my room and—”

“ _Poe!_ ”  Both Poe and Ben cringed when B.B. shouted from the hall.  He burst back into the living room just as the two older boys pulled away from each other.  “Guess what!”

“What?” Poe asked.  Ben sighed and got up to get his Blu-ray out of the player.

“Mom said I can be Oogie Boogie for Halloween!”

“Why do you want to be Oogie Boogie?” Poe chuckled.  “He’s the bad guy.”  Ben, who didn’t know why the news had merited such a dramatic announcement, sighed again and sat down by Poe once more.

“I _know_.  And he’s full of _bugs!_ ” B.B. crowed.  “Mom said I can’t put any bugs in it, but she’s still gonna make me a costume!”

“That’s nice,” muttered Ben.

B.B. gave him a highly critical look, then asked, “You guys are gonna take me trick-or-treating, right?”

“We’re _what?_ ” Ben growled.

“Poe _always_ takes me trick-or-treating,” B.B. announced, “ever since Mom let us go by ourselves.  And since _you’re_ always with Poe now, I guess you’re going, too.”

Ben opened his mouth, then closed it again and looked at Poe.  Poe gave him an embarrassed look, followed by that perfect smile, and shrugged.

“I guess so,” said Ben.

“Well, if I’m Oogie Boogie, then you can be Jack,” B.B. went on.  “You’re tall and skinny and you wear black all the time.”

“Wait, I didn’t say I would dress up,” Ben interrupted.  “We’re too old for that!”

“You can’t go trick-or-treating without dressing _up_ ,” B.B. lectured him.  “ _Poe_ dressed up last year.”

“He did?”  Ben grinned in spite of himself and looked at his boyfriend, who had started to blush.  “What as?”

“He was a vampire,” B.B. declared.  Ben tried to imagine cute, innocent-looking little Poe as a vampire, and failed.  “But this year he’ll have to be Sally.”

“ _What?_ ” Poe yelped.  “I can’t be Sally—Sally’s a _girl_.”

“You have to be.”  B.B. explained it all patiently, as if Poe were the eleven-year-old and B.B. were the big brother: “Sally’s Jack’s girlfriend, and she’s in love with him even though he’s not good enough for her.  Just like you and Ben.”

Ben scowled.  “Now wait a minute—”

“ _Please_ , you _have_ to,” B.B. begged.  He bestowed a quick, pleading look upon Ben, then turned it on Poe.  Obviously, the kid had figured out that he could convince his big brother to do just about anything. . . and that Poe, in turn, could convince Ben.

“Buddy, Sally wears a _dress_ ,” Poe said.  “I can’t take you trick-or-treating in a dress, everybody would laugh at me.”  Ben hadn’t thought about the dress aspect of the costume, and he suddenly decided that maybe wearing costumes wouldn’t be such a bad thing after all.

“You could wear jeans under it,” he suggested to Poe.  “It’d just be like a long shirt.”  Poe shot him a look that was half annoyed and half intrigued, then turned back to B.B.

“Okay, B.B., _if_ we do this, you gotta promise you’ll behave—and no complaining when we say it’s time to go home.  We’re going to the haunted house Halloween night, but you’re too young for them to let you in.  We’ll have to bring you home first.”

“Aww,” B.B. groaned.  “Okay, I promise.  So _you_ promise you’ll really take me, no backing out?”  Poe glanced at Ben again, who shrugged and nodded.

“Yeah,” Poe told B.B., “we promise.”

“Yes!  This’ll be the best Halloween ever!” B.B. crowed.  He pounced on Poe and gave him a big hug—B.B. hadn’t quite outgrown hugging his brother—then looked up at Ben.

“Thanks,” he muttered.  Ben was just grateful B.B. didn’t try to hug him too.

“No problem,” Ben muttered right back.  B.B. finally scampered off to his room to go to bed (although Ben suspected he’d be awake plotting his costume for some time), and he left Ben truly alone with Poe for the first time that evening.  Ben tried to lean in for another kiss, but Poe looked preoccupied.

“You think we have enough time to get costumes done?” he asked abruptly.  Ben sat back again and stifled a sigh.

“Sure, Halloween’s not for nearly a month,” Ben assured him.

“Yeah, but. . . I can’t ask Mom for help since she’s gotta make a whole costume for B.B.  I mean, it’s basically a burlap bag, but still,” Poe fretted.

“Don’t worry, baby, I’ll get everything together,” said Ben.  Poe looked impressed, and Ben used the opportunity to put an arm around his boyfriend’s shoulders and pull him closer.  “They’d look better if I had time to make them from scratch, but I can get us pre-made ones and customize ‘em a little.  You just worry about deciding where we’re taking the kid.”

“He has a name,” Poe pointed out with a bit of a playful sulk.  Ben didn’t mind, considering that when Poe sulked, he stuck his lower lip out in a perfectly kissable way.

After bending his head to kiss said lower lip, Ben amended, “Okay, where we’re taking _B.B._   I’ll take care of everything else.”

“I’ll at least pay for mine—” Poe began.

“Nope.”  Ben silenced him with another, longer kiss.  Poe tilted his head back with a delicious little moan that made Ben squirm.  He managed to pull back to add, “Your birthday’s this month, so it’ll be part of your present.”

“Part of?” Poe asked.  “You mean you’re getting me more than one thing?”

“Well yeah.  You got me a ton of stuff for mine a couple months ago.”  Ben leaned to the side and started kissing Poe’s neck, which in the past had proved to be a sure-fire way for coaxing Poe into a make-out session.

“Yeah, but—nngh, Ben. . . .”  Sure enough, Poe dropped the subject of Halloween and took Ben back to his bedroom shortly thereafter.

\--

Although he had warmed up to the idea of dressing up for Halloween, Ben still wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea of spending another evening hanging around B.B.  However, he decided it wouldn’t be so bad, once he and Poe got permission for Ben to spend the night afterwards.  It would be the first time Ben had slept over at Poe’s house, and the thought of curling up with his boyfriend in Poe’s little bed kept Ben from getting too annoyed over B.B.

For Poe’s eighteenth birthday in mid-October, Ben gave him a stack of movies and CDs—and sent him flowers, which Poe loved—with the promise of more to come on Halloween.  Poe, he knew, assumed Ben was referring to his costume, but Ben had something else in mind too.  _If I have the nerve to give it to him,_ Ben thought more than once throughout the month.

Since Halloween fell on a weekday, their town was holding trick-or-treating on the Friday evening before the holiday.  Ben went over to Poe’s house right after school and left a bag full of costumes and supplies in Poe’s room before they went outside to help B.B. carve a pumpkin before Mrs. Dameron got home from work.

“Mom won’t let me use the knife,” B.B. complained as he plopped down on the front stoop next to a rather large pumpkin.  “But she said I could go on and make my jack o’lantern if Poe did the cutting.”

“There’s a very good reason she won’t let you use this,” Poe lectured as sat down in front of the pumpkin, brandishing a large serrated knife.  “Knives are dangerous, and you could hurt yourself.”

“Hmph, I’d be careful,” B.B. mumbled, but without much pique; he was too excited about his jack o’lantern.  “I want it to look really scary, Poe!”

“Well hold on, we gotta hollow it out first,” Poe chuckled.  He started cutting a lid out of the top of the pumpkin, angling the knife inward so the lid wouldn’t fall in.  “What do you want on it?”

“I—I dunno, just something scary!” declared B.B.

Ben, who had kept out of it until then, finally made a suggestion: “Why don’t we draw on it first, before we start carving?  Then Poe can cut it once it looks like you want it to.”

Poe glanced at him and sounded a bit surprised when he said, “Hey, that’s a good idea.”

“Yeah, it _is_.”  B.B. eyed Ben with something that might have been the beginnings of respect.  “Will you draw it for me?”

“Me?” Ben muttered.

“Yeah!  Poe said you’re a really good artist.”

Ben felt himself blush, and he looked at Poe, who smiled at him and added, “Well, you _are_.”

“Um, I guess I could,” Ben relented.

“Here.”  Poe pulled the knife out of the pumpkin and handed it to Ben.  “Finish cutting the top off, and I’ll go get you a marker.”  He went back into the house, leaving Ben alone with B.B.  Ben shoved the knife back in and sawed away at the pumpkin until he was able to lift the top off by the stem.

“Gross,” he muttered as he looked at the goop and seeds inside.

“Don’t be a baby,” B.B. scoffed.  He plunged his small hand into the pumpkin and began hauling out handfuls of pumpkin innards, ignoring the large spoon Poe had left out for that purpose.  “It’s cool, it’s all slimy!”

“Ugh,” snorted Ben, and he looked away until Poe got back with a Sharpie.

“Here,” Poe said, dropping down to sit next to Ben on the step in front of the pumpkin.  He laughed at Ben’s expression and the pile of pumpkin guts on the newspaper beside B.B.  “You don’t like cleaning out the pumpkin, hunh?”

“It’s disgusting,” Ben grumbled.  Poe just laughed some more and picked up the spoon to scrape the inside of the pumpkin clean.

“Okay, buddy, tell Ben what you want him to draw, then you can start picking out the seeds while he works on it,” Poe told his brother.

“Just make it _scary_ ,” B.B. ordered.  “With a big mouth and lots of teeth!  And squinty eyes.”

“They can’t be _too_ squinty,” Ben pointed out, “or they won’t let enough light shine through.”

“Whatever, just _do_ it,” whined B.B.  Ben stifled a sharp retort and started drawing.  B.B. cast a critical eye on him from time to time, but he was mostly preoccupied with separating the pumpkin seeds from the stringy pulp.  Poe explained that their mother would roast the seeds when she got home from work.

“My mom doesn’t cook much,” Ben commented as he worked on what he hoped was a sufficiently squinty pumpkin eye.  “She’s too busy.  Dad tries every now and then, but he usually burns everything.”

“ _Our_ mom cooks dinner every night!” B.B. declared.  Then, perhaps remembering what power Leia Organa wielded over the school, he added, “Although I guess your mom _is_ pretty busy.”

Ben decided to change the subject, and he turned the pumpkin around to face B.B. as he asked, “There, is this good enough?”

“ _Whoa,_ ” the kid gasped.  “It’s _awesome!_ ”  He looked up at Ben, eyes wide, and breathed, “Thank you!”

“Uh, you’re welcome,” muttered Ben.  He was a little embarrassed by the praise, but then Poe reached over and squeezed his hand.

“I _told_ you you’re a good artist,” he assured Ben.  “I just hope I don’t mess it up trying to carve it, it’s so intricate.”

“Just cut the big chunks out, and I’ll do the detailed parts,” Ben suggested.  Poe nodded and started carving the basic shapes of the eyes and mouth.  When he’d finished, Ben used the tip of the knife to slice out smaller pieces of pumpkin until the design was finished.

“There,” he said, sitting back and laying aside the knife so he could flex his cramped fingers.  “Is that good, B.B.?”

“Yeah!” B.B. enthused.  “It looks great!  Poe, can we light it up now?”

Poe laughed, “Buddy, it’s not even dark out yet.  Let’s wait until Mom gets home at least, then she can see it too.”  B.B. sulked until Poe added, “We have to start getting our costumes on, anyway.  Ben and me can help you with yours now, then we’ll get dressed once Mom’s here.”

“Okay,” B.B. finally agreed.  He gave the jack o’lantern one last, longing glance before following Poe inside.  His costume was easy enough to get on; as Poe had mentioned, it was mostly a shapeless burlap sack which they stuffed with crumpled newspapers to turn the rather small B.B. into the rather rotund Oogie Boogie.  Since trick-or-treaters weren’t allowed to wear masks around town, Mrs. Dameron had made B.B. a hat out of leftover burlap to mimic the boogie man’s pointed head.

“Do I look scary enough?” B.B. asked Poe when they were through getting the costume on over his shorts and t-shirt.  The boy regarded himself in his dresser mirror and frowned.  “I don’t think I am.  Mom shoulda let me put bugs in it.”

“No bugs,” sighed Poe.  “And you look fine.  You don’t wanna be _too_ scary—there’ll be little kids out tonight!  You wouldn’t want to frighten them, would you?”

“Yes,” said B.B., “I _would_.”  Ben snickered, and Poe glared up at him.

“You aren’t helping,” Poe grumbled.

“I have an idea,” Ben chuckled.  “Wait here a second.”  He left B.B.’s messy, cluttered room and crossed the hall to Poe’s marginally tidier one.  After rummaging through his bag to find one of the black eye pencils he’d brought, Ben returned and crouched down in front of B.B.

“You need more stitches,” Ben declared.  “Oogie Boogie has them all over his mouth— _that_ ’ll make you look scary.”

B.B. eyed the pencil and asked, “You gonna draw them on?  With that?”  When Ben nodded, the boy challenged, “That’s not _girl_ makeup, is it?”

“Uh. . . no, of course it isn’t,” mumbled Ben, glad he’d bought NYX makeup instead of Cover Girl or something.  “Look, I’m gonna put it on Poe too.”

“You are?” Poe stammered.

“ _Yes._ ”  Ben looked over his shoulder at his boyfriend.  “Sally has stiches all over her face, _and_ her arms.”

“Well, okay,” B.B. acquiesced, and Ben turned back around.  “As long as Poe’s wearing it too, I guess it’s not girly.”  Deciding not to mention to Poe that he’d brought lipstick too, Ben uncapped the pencil and began drawing stitches around B.B.’s mouth.

“Hold still,” he growled as the kid squirmed.

“It _tickles_ ,” protested B.B.  However, when Ben had finished and B.B. looked in the mirror, he proclaimed the application a success.  “You’re right, it looks really cool!” he admitted to Ben.  “If I can’t have bugs, at least my face looks scary now.”

“It does look pretty good,” Poe commented as he leaned up to kiss Ben’s cheek.  “Now I’m kinda excited to see what you’ll do for mine.”

“It’ll look good, I promise.”  Ben kissed Poe’s forehead, which B.B. declared “gross” in no uncertain terms.  Luckily, Mrs. Dameron got home soon after and forestalled an impending argument.  She had brought McDonald’s, which, as she admitted quietly to Poe and Ben, was probably the only way she could get B.B. to eat any dinner before trick-or-treating.

“His costume looks great, Mom,” Poe said around a mouthful of cheeseburger as the boys ate at the kitchen table.  “You did really good.  Ben drew the stitches on him.”

“It’s cute, Ben,” Mrs. Dameron said from the counter by the oven, where she spreading pumpkin seeds on a cookie sheet to roast.

“I’m not _cute_ ,” B.B. protested.  “I’m _scary_.”

After their quick dinner, Poe and Ben went to Poe’s room to put their own costumes on.  Poe was pleased with his, despite it being a dress, and with the work Ben had put into customizing it by adding some stitches and patches.

“It’s great, as long as I can wear my jeans under it,” Poe said.

“I got an extra-large so it’d be big on you, and it’ll fit over your pants,” Ben assured him.  “Here, try it on.”  Poe slipped out of his shirt and (too quickly for Ben’s liking) pulled the dress on over his head and tugged the skirt down over his jeans.  The lower hem reached his knees, and his jeans looked a little weird under it, but Ben appreciated the way the v-shaped neckline revealed a triangle of Poe’s tan chest.

“I’m glad you’re not making me wear a wig,” Poe mumbled as he straightened the shoulders of the dress, only to have it slip to one side again in a most endearing way.  “I don’t look _too_ girly.”

“You sound like your brother,” said Ben, “but I wasn’t about to ask you to cover up your gorgeous hair.”  He reached up to ruffle it before stripping off his own shirt to get changed as well.  Once they were both dressed, Ben sat Poe down on his bed to draw the stitches on his face, neck, and arms.

“I don’t care what you say,” Ben muttered as he worked, “you look cute.  Really cute.”

Poe blushed and said, “Shut up,” but he smiled all the same.  Ben finished with the eye pencil by drawing stitch “eyelashes” around Poe’s eyes—and adding a little eyeliner along his lids, just because.  Poe didn’t protest, and Ben’s heartbeat sped up a bit when he saw how lovely Poe’s eyes looked lined in black.

“I guess it does look pretty cool,” Poe said, glancing over at his reflection in his mirror once Ben was done.  “And anyway, we’re just gonna see little kids and grownups until we go to the haunted house later—I can always tone it down some before that.”  Ben didn’t want Poe to “tone it down” at all, but he decided to choose his battles. . . and he had one more battle to win.

“There’s just one more thing you need,” Ben informed Poe as he bent down to dig through his bag again.

“What?” Poe asked, with understandable suspicion.

“This,” muttered Ben, and he held up a tube of dark red lipstick.  “Sally has red lips.”  Poe’s lined eyes widened, and he shook his head so hard, dark curls of hair danced over his forehead.

“Ben, I can’t wear lipstick!” he protested.

“Why not?”  Ben stared at him until Poe flushed and averted his eyes.

“I. . . I’ll look like a _girl_.”

Ben sighed, “You really _do_ sound like B.B.  And Sally _is_ a girl.  Look, just try it on, okay?  We can wipe it off before we go out, if you don’t like it.  I just—I think it’ll look really good.”

“This is all just about you wanting to see me in lipstick, isn’t it?” muttered Poe.

“No, not _just_ ,” protested Ben.  “Accuracy to the character is important too.  But. . . baby, I _do_ really wanna see you in lipstick,” he pleaded, deciding that he stood a better chance of getting what he wanted if he was honest about it.

Poe heaved a sigh of his own then grumbled, “Okay, fine, but I’m taking it off if it looks too weird.”

Ben grinned at him.  “It won’t look weird, I promise.  Hey, do you have any ChapStick?  That’ll make it go on smoother.”

“Yeah, I think so, in that drawer by the bed.”  Poe pointed, and Ben managed to find the ChapStick in the cluttered drawer.  After Poe put it on, Ben grasped his square chin in one hand and held Poe’s head still.  Before he applied the lipstick, Ben leaned in and kissed Poe softly.

“Mm,” Poe breathed as he parted his lips and kissed Ben back.  “So if I leave the lipstick on, you won’t be able to kiss me all night.  Are you _sure_ you want me to wear it?”

“I’ll live,” Ben told him, although he got in one final kiss before drawing back.  He put the lipstick on Poe, starting at the middle of each of the smaller boy’s perfect, peach-colored lips and drawing it outward to the corners of his mouth.  When he was through, Ben sat back and admired his handiwork.

“You look beautiful, Poe,” he whispered.  Poe’s eyes appeared large and a bit apprehensive as they searched Ben’s face; then he turned and looked in the mirror.

“I. . . I don’t know, Ben.  It looks so weird.”  Poe got up from the bed and went to examine himself more closely.  “And I don’t know what Mom’ll say.  Or B.B.”

Ben had to admit, Poe had a good point about that.  Besides, his own mother had insisted that Ben bring Poe and B.B. by the Solo residence _and_ to Ben’s uncle Luke’s house for trick-or-treating.  Ben had a feeling that his mom would know Poe’s lipstick was all _his_ idea and not Poe’s.

“Maybe you could really blot it a lot?” Ben finally suggested.  “Like, so that most of it comes off but there’s just a little color left?”

Poe agreed right away, sounding relieved: “Okay, yeah.  That’s a good idea!”  Ben removed most of Poe’s lipstick by scrubbing at his lips with a tissue, and after taking a careful look in the mirror, Poe declared that he was satisfied with his appearance.

Ben took a turn at the mirror and used his eye pencil and some shadow to color black circles around his own eyes, mimicking Jack Skellington’s hollow sockets; then he drew some skeleton-tooth lines over his own lips.  He was just finishing up when B.B. pounded on the closed door to Poe’s room.

“Aren’t you guys ready _yet_?” the kid bellowed through the door.  “Trick-or-treating’s gonna be _over_ if you don’t hurry up!”

Poe chuckled and called back, “Buddy, it’s only six now, it just _started_.  We’ve got until nine, and anyway, I think we’re ready.”  He went to the door, then paused and looked up at Ben.

“Um, if you want me to. . . I could put the lipstick back on when we come home tonight?” Poe suggested in a shy voice.  “Just for you?”

Ben felt his cheeks flush as he nodded eagerly.  “God, yeah.  I’d—I’d really like that, baby.”  Poe grinned at him suddenly and leaned up to peck him on the lips before he opened the door.

“What do you think, B.B.?” Poe asked his little brother.  “Do I look too girly for you?”

B.B. looked him over critically, then shook his head.

“No, you look pretty cool.  Like Sally—but like a boy too.”  B.B. glanced up at Ben and allowed, “You look cool too.  Tall and pale and skinny like Jack.”

“Thanks,” Ben muttered.  “I guess.”

“Now come _on_ ,” insisted B.B.  He grabbed Poe’s wrist and tugged him toward the kitchen to pick up his trick-or-treat bag and say goodbye to his mother.  Ben trailed after them and dutifully posed for the picture Mrs. Dameron insisted on taking of them.

“B.B., don’t get ahead of Poe and Ben,” Mrs. Dameron cautioned him, “and don’t eat anything until one of them has looked at it first.”

“Okay, Mom, I _know_ ,” B.B. sighed dramatically.

“ _And_ you do what they say,” she added.  “When they say it’s time to come home, it’s time to come home.”

“I have to mind Ben too?” the boy groaned.  “ _He’s_ not my brother.”  Ben glared at him but felt a bit of triumph when Mrs. Dameron appeared to be masking a smile.

“Yes, you have to mind Ben too.  He’s not your brother, but he’s your brother’s boyfriend, and I trust him.”

Ben’s triumph dissolved into surprise and a strange feeling he didn’t recognize at first; then he realized it was a kind of shy pride.

 _She trusts me—someone actually **trusts** me, and it’s Poe’s **mom** ,_ Ben thought.  He’d always wondered if Mrs. Dameron really was okay with her son having a boyfriend, and with that boyfriend being _him_. . . but apparently, she was.

“Okay, okay, I’ll mind Ben,” sighed B.B.  “Can we please _go_ now?”

“Yes, you can go,” Mrs. Dameron laughed.  “Have fun.”

B.B. wasted no time in getting to the front door, with Poe and Ben following.  It had gotten dark out while the older boys were getting ready, and B.B. had put a lit candle in the jack o’lantern.  Ben stopped to admire it while Poe locked the door behind them.

“Okay, Oogie Boogie,” Poe called to B.B., “let’s go.  Just don’t get too far ahead, like Mom said.”  B.B. took off like a shot, and Poe grabbed Ben’s hand.  He grinned and asked, “Ready, Jack?”

“Yeah. . . Sally.”  Ben leaned down and kissed the end of Poe’s nose before they started off after B.B.

\--

To be continued


	23. Chapter 23

Ben was already tired by the time they finished canvassing Poe’s neighborhood and he was driving them over to his own house.  B.B., however, was full of energy, most of it fueled by the candy he had been eating all evening.  Ben had always thought Poe talked a lot, but his little brother talked twice as much, and only about things Ben found extremely uninteresting.  He was actually glad when they got to his house, just because it meant the kid might shut up for a few minutes.

Still, Ben had been as patient as he could manage for Poe’s sake, and his efforts seemed to be paying off.  Poe held his hand as they walked from the car to Ben’s door, and he smiled at Ben sweetly enough to make enduring B.B. worthwhile.

When B.B. stopped in front of the door to Ben’s—and Principal Organa’s—house, he stood staring at it, rather than knocking or ringing the bell.

“Well, go on!” Poe chuckled.  “Ring the doorbell!”

“You’re _sure_ your mom won’t mind?” B.B. asked Ben with a nervous look over his shoulder.  Ben had to remind himself of the awe most younger kids held for their school principal.  At the same time, though, he felt oddly proud that B.B. actually asked his opinion on something.

“I’ll get in trouble if we _don’t_ trick-or-treat here,” he told the kid.  “She made me promise we’d come so she could see our costumes.”  _And probably take a billion pictures,_ he added to himself.  That last part likely _wouldn’t_ make B.B. more eager to ring the bell.

“Okay,” B.B. said warily.  He turned back to the door and pushed the doorbell button, then took a step back to stand so close to Poe, he almost stepped on his big brother’s foot.  But when Leia opened the door, she was smiling—and, Ben noticed with intense relief, she _wasn’t_ wearing a costume.  Not that Halloween costumes were exactly her thing, but Ben wouldn’t have put it past her to wear one just to embarrass him.

 _Although that’s more like something Dad would do,_ Ben realized.  The thought sent him into a near panic, and he prayed they could get away from the house without seeing his father.

“Trick or treat?” B.B. asked in a small voice.

“Goodness, don’t you look scary,” said Leia.  “Why don’t you come in?  _But_ ,” she added sternly, “only if you promise not to kidnap anybody.”

B.B. grinned, and Ben marveled that his mother even remembered Oogie Boogie since as far as he knew, she hadn’t watched _The Nightmare Before Christmas_ in at least a decade.  Inside, they ran into Han anyway, but thankfully he wasn’t dressed up.  Leia gave B.B. more candy than Ben thought he deserved, then took the photos Ben had been dreading.  That part wasn’t so bad either, though, because she got some of just Ben and Poe too.  For the last one, Poe startled Ben by leaning up and kissing him, just like Sally and Jack on Spiral Hill.  Ben felt his face turn a most un-skeleton-like red at being kissed in front of his parents, but at the same time, he couldn’t wait to see the photo later.

B.B. had gotten over his nervousness by they time they left Ben’s house, and as they went back to the car, he chattered about how nice Ben’s mom was, and how cool his dad was (Ben cringed), and how awesome his house was.

“I can’t believe you live _there_ ,” B.B. enthused.  He climbed into the backseat but leaned forward between the two front seats to keep talking.  “It’s huge!  I thought Poe and I were lucky to have our own rooms, but you have your own _floor_.  I wanted to see your room though—Poe’s seen your room, right?”

“Of course I have, buddy,” Poe chuckled.  “Where do you think I slept when I spent the night?”

“Oh.  Right.”  B.B. frowned.  “Did you sleep in the same bed?”

“Well yeah.  Ben has two rooms but just one bed.”  Poe’s face flushed a bit under his makeup stitches, and he shooed B.B. back into his seat.  “Buckle up so we can get going.”

“Where’re we going?”

“To my uncles’ house,” Ben muttered.  “And then _you’re_ going home.”  When B.B. finally fastened his seatbelt, Ben started the car and headed for their next stop, just down the street from his own home.

“Aww,” B.B. groaned, although not too much after Mrs. Dameron’s warning that he shouldn’t complain.  “Then you guys are going to the haunted house right?  And then Ben’s spending the night?”

“Yeah.”  Ben pulled up at his uncle Luke’s house and shut off the car.  B.B. didn’t get out right away though; instead he frowned again.

“Are you sleeping with Poe in his bed?  It’s pretty small.  And you’re really big.”

Ben glared at him through the rearview mirror and grumbled, “We’ll both fit.  Now get out, I want to get this over with.”  B.B. stuck his tongue out at him.

“Is your uncle your mom’s brother, or your dad’s?” Poe asked as they all got out of the car.

“Mom’s.  They’re twins—not identical, but the other kind.”

“Fraternal,” B.B. piped up.  “We learned about that in science class.  Fraternal is when there’s two eggs fertilized by two different sperms, and identical is when there’s one egg fertilized by one sperm, but then it splits in two.”

“Great, thanks for that information,” Ben muttered.  He really didn’t want to hear B.B. talking about “sperms” so soon after asking where Ben was going to sleep.

“Don’t be a know-it-all, B.B.,” Poe chided, but he was grinning at Ben’s embarrassment.

Ben had been too preoccupied with worrying about his parents humiliating him to worry about his _uncle_ humiliating him.  After all, Luke wasn’t nearly as embarrassing as Han. . . or so Ben thought, until B.B. rang Luke’s doorbell, and Luke came to the door in a Halloween costume.

At least Ben _hoped_ he was in a costume.  Luke was wearing a white lab coat and glasses and had his hair sticking out in all directions.  Since Luke wasn’t a doctor and didn’t need glasses and generally kept his hair combed, Ben assumed he was meant to be dressed up as. . . something.  Whatever he was going for, Luke looked like a dork, and Ben cringed.

“Hey Ben,” Luke greeted him, cheerfully oblivious to his nephew’s suffering.  “And you must be Poe?”

“Yes sir,” said Poe, who was grinning again.  Luke looked him over, refrained from commenting on Poe’s dress, and smiled.  Poe added, “And this is my brother, B.B.  I guess Principal Organa told you we were coming.”

“Yeah, we’re ready for you,” said Luke.  Poe cast a curious look at Ben, who realized then that he’d never mentioned his uncle’s husband.  Ben knew Poe wouldn’t make a big deal about it, but he was a little worried about how B.B. would react.  Ben didn’t have long to worry, though, because a second later, his other uncle appeared next to Luke in the doorway.

“Is that Ben?” he asked, then smiled at the boys.  “Oh, hey.”

“Hi Uncle Wedge,” Ben muttered.  As if Luke’s bizarre costume weren’t enough, Wedge was dressed up like the classic Frankenstein monster—bolts in the neck and all—and Ben suddenly realized that Luke was meant to be the mad scientist who’d created him.  Ben groaned, “You guys are such _dorks_.”

“Because of our costumes?” Wedge asked, raising one dark eyebrow.  It stood out in stark contrast to his grey hair, which had once been much darker according to the photos Ben had seen of Wedge and Luke when they weren’t much older than him.

“Yes, but in general too,” grumbled Ben.

“ _I_ think their costumes are _cool_!” B.B. pronounced.  “They go together like yours and Poe’s do.”  He had started to hold out his trick-or-treat sack for candy, but then he stopped and studied the two men a minute.  “Are you boyfriends too, like Poe and Ben?”

“B.B.!” Poe hissed.  “Don’t be rude!”  But Wedge laughed out loud, and Luke smiled even though he was blushing at the same time.

“No, we’re married,” Luke finally told B.B.

“Oh.”  B.B. looked back at Poe.  “Are you and Ben gonna get married?”

“For God’s sake, just shut up and get your candy!” Ben exploded.

“Hmph, Poe better _not_ marry you, ‘cos you’re a jerk,” B.B. announced.  He finally collected his treats from Luke and Wedge; then Luke passed candy bars to Poe and Ben too.

“Jerk or not, you deserve a reward for babysitting,” Luke told Ben, with just enough of a smirk to show that despite his normally sweet nature, he _was_ related to Ben and Leia.  Ben thanked him, having been well-trained in manners by Leia even if he didn’t usually show it, and the Damerons did as well.

“Nice to finally meet you, Poe,” Luke said as the boys were leaving.  “As much as Ben talks about you, I figured you had to be pretty special.”

“ _Ugh_ , good _night_ ,” Ben growled.  Poe just blushed and smiled.

On the way back to his house, Poe murmured to Ben, “You didn’t tell me your uncle was gay.”

“It never came up,” Ben muttered back.  He glanced in the rearview mirror to see if B.B. was listening, but the younger boy was absorbed in taking stock of his candy haul.  Ben looked back and Poe and asked, “Is it a problem?”

Poe rolled his eyes.  “Of course not, doofus.  I was just surprised that he’s married to another guy.”  Poe studied Ben a second then added, “And really, I think his husband looks more like you and your mom than your uncle does!”

“Yeah, I guess he kinda does,” Ben admitted.  “Uncle Wedge has dark eyes like we do, and his hair used to be brown.  Uncle Luke looks more like my grandfather did, and Mom and I look more like my grandmother.”

“I bet she was pretty,” said Poe.

“Why?”

“Because your mom’s pretty.”  Before Ben could be horrified, Poe went on with a beatific smile, “And so are you.”

“I’m not _pretty_ ,” Ben grumbled, flushing.  He looked back out at the street ahead.  “. . . _You’re_ pretty.”

“You two are gross,” said B.B. around a mouthful of candy.  Apparently, he’d been listening after all.

They got B.B. home just before nine.  He gave an enthusiastic yes when Mrs. Dameron asked if he’d had a good time but was considerably less enthusiastic when she took away the rest of his candy to save for later, then sent him to his room to get ready for bed.

“Are you two still going to the haunted house?” Mrs. Dameron asked the older boys.

“Yeah, I guess,” said Poe.  “I wanna go to my room and check how my costume looks first, though.”  He grabbed Ben’s hand and tugged the larger boy after him, but once they were in Poe’s bedroom, he gave Ben a hesitant look.

“Do you really, really want to go to the haunted house?” he asked, clearly hoping Ben would say no.  Since Ben had already started feeling tired, he didn’t mind, although he wondered what had changed Poe’s mind.  _Maybe he’s too embarrassed for any of our friends to see him dressed like this,_ Ben thought.

“Not if you don’t want to,” Ben answered.  He reached up to stroke Poe’s cheek.  “Are you tired?”

“Kinda, but, um. . . .”  Poe flushed and bit his lower lip in that way that always drove Ben crazy.  “Really I’d rather be alone with you than go hang out with a bunch more people.  Could we just drive around a while instead?”

“Sure, rooster.”  Ben pulled Poe closer and wrapped him in a hug.  “Is everything okay?”

“’Course it is,” Poe mumbled against Ben’s chest.  He put his arms around Ben too and hugged him tight.  “It’s just, I’ve been wanting to make out with you all evening, and I couldn’t because B.B. was there.  You look so handsome in that suit, and the makeup looks really hot on you, and. . . um, yeah.”

Ben chuckled and nuzzled Poe’s wavy hair.  “Are you sure you even want to drive around at all?  We _could_ just go to bed.”

“I’m sure.”  Poe dropped his hands to Ben’s ass and squeezed it, then pulled away before Ben could start groping him in return.  He laughed at the frustrated look Ben shot him and stayed just out of reach when Ben grabbed for him again.

“If we stay out about an hour, Mom will’ve gone to bed when we get back,” Poe explained as he darted to the door of his room.  “Her bedroom’s at the other end of the house, so we won’t have to be as quiet as we would if we got in bed now.”

“Okay, okay,” Ben sighed.  He looked at the makeup he’d left lying on his dresser and smirked as an idea occurred to him.  “Hey. . . if I bring the lipstick with us, will you put it on in the car and wear it?  You could take your jeans off too and just wear the dress, since we’ll be alone and all.”

Poe blushed all over again, but then, to Ben’s delight, he nodded.

“Oh, all right, if it’ll make you quit bugging me about the lipstick,” Poe gave in.  Ben stuck the tube of lipstick in his pocket, and they went back to his car after saying goodnight to Mrs. Dameron.

Ben drove them a few blocks away then pulled into the empty parking lot of a closed store.  When Poe gave him a nervous look, Ben just grinned.

“Pants off,” he said.  “You promised.”

“Ugh, _fine_.”  There wasn’t much light, so Ben couldn’t be sure, but he would have placed a pretty large bet that Poe was blushing once more as he unbuttoned his jeans and wriggled out of them.  He kicked off his shoes and pulled the jeans all the way off, then tugged the skirt of his dress down as far as it would go over his bare legs.

“There,” Poe grumbled.  “Now get us out of here before the cops see your car and think we’re robbers or something.”

“Okay, but you’ve gotta put the lipstick on while I drive.”  Ben handed him the tube, and Poe complied, using the mirror in his visor, as Ben drove back out onto the road.

“It’s probably on all crooked,” complained Poe when he’d finished and dropped the lipstick tube into the cup holder on the car’s console.  “I look stupid.”

“No you don’t,” Ben said with his eyes on the road.  But when he stopped at a traffic light, he looked over at Poe and added with more enthusiasm, “You look freaking _hot_ , Poe.”

“Really?”  Poe looked down at his legs, which really weren’t all that exposed considering that the dress nearly reached his knees.

“Unh hunh.”  When the light changed, Ben accelerated and at the same time reached over to put a hand on Poe’s leg.  As he slid it up under the dress, Poe squirmed.

“Ben, you’re _awful_.  You wanted me to wear this just so you could feel me up!”

“Want me to stop?” Ben asked.  He squeezed Poe’s thigh.

“Nngh, _no_ ,” Poe huffed.

Ben drove around for a little while, rubbing Poe’s leg without going too far up, even though he had a feeling Poe wanted him to judging from the little whimpers the smaller boy made from time to time.  Those noises, and an occasional look at what Poe was wearing, made Ben start to get hard before too long, and he shifted in the driver’s seat trying to get more comfortable.  Finally, even though only about half an hour had passed, Ben decided he couldn’t stand much more.

 _He did say he wanted to make out_ , Ben thought.  _And I still have to give him his present._   He’d been carrying the gift around in his pocket all evening, even though he’d originally planned to wait until he and Poe were in for the night.  The more he thought about it, however, the less he wanted to wait.  _Better to get it over with now than keep worrying about it,_ he told himself.

Ben cleared his throat and asked, “Uh, Poe, you want to park for awhile?”

“Park?  Where?”  Poe’s voice sounded slightly hoarse, and when Ben’s hand stopped moving on his leg, Poe pressed his thigh tighter against it.

“Uh, maybe at the—well, at the park?  That’s what it’s for, right?” Ben joked, cursing himself immediately after for being so lame.

“No,” Poe responded indignantly.  “It’s closed at night, and we could get in trouble.”

“We’re not gonna get in _trouble_ ,” groaned Ben.  “I’ll drive way up in there, by the lake, and turn the lights off.  No one’s gonna know we’re there.”

“The cops probably patrol it or something,” Poe muttered. . . then gasped when Ben trailed his fingers all the way up his inner thigh.

“Suit yourself, rooster,” Ben said as he took his hand away.

“Bennnnnn,” Poe whined.  He rocked his hips forward, trying to maintain contact with Ben’s hand, and for a second Ben saw the fabric of his dress stretched by what could only be an erection.

“I can’t concentrate on driving like this,” Ben said loftily.  “Now, if I parked the car, I could go back to touching you, but if _you_ don’t want to, then—”

“Dammit, go!  Go park at the—the park,” Poe groaned.  “But you’d better touch more than just my leg when we get there, you’re driving me _crazy_.”

The park was deserted, as Ben had hoped it would be, and he switched off his headlights as soon as he turned the car in.  He was barely able to make out the narrow two-lane road that wound through the wooded area, but eventually they reached a little parking lot by the lake where people fished or boated in the daytime.  As soon as he turned the car off, Ben moved to face Poe, but the smaller boy was already leaning over the console to pull Ben into his arms.  Poe kissed him hard, shoving his tongue deep into Ben’s mouth, and Ben kissed him back thinking of how hot it was being kissed by a boy in lipstick.  He dropped his hand into Poe’s lap and squeezed the bulge under his dress, and Poe gasped into his mouth.

“Nngh, Ben,” he hissed; then his hand groped between Ben’s legs too.  Ben rubbed against his hand a second before gently pulling back just enough to break their kiss.

Poe gave him a hurt look anyway and asked, “What?”  All of Ben’s nerves about Poe’s last birthday gift returned in full force, and he almost changed his mind about giving it to Poe at all.  But then he steeled himself and let go of Poe’s erection to reach into his pocket instead.

“I told you I had one more birthday present for you, right?” Ben mumbled.

“Y-yeah?  What, you’re giving it to me _now_?”  Poe sat back, letting Ben go as well, and studied Ben’s face.  Perhaps seeing there just how nervous Ben was, Poe relaxed and said more calmly, “O-okay.”

“Um, we. . . I know we’re way too young to get married,” stammered Ben, “or, or even engaged, but—but Poe, I love you, and I want to be with you forever.  I know I _do_ want to get married, one day, like. . . like after we get out of college or whatever.”  He stopped rambling and looked at Poe again, who was watching him wide-eyed.  Ben swallowed hard and asked, “Do. . . do you?  One day?”

Poe swallowed too, nodded, and said, “Yeah.”

“Um, then—then here.”  Ben pulled his hand out of his pocket and held it out.  Poe looked down at what was lying in Ben’s palm.

“It’s a promise ring,” Ben told him in little more than a whisper.  “To promise that—that someday we’ll get engaged and then I’ll marry you.”

“Ben. . . .”  Poe was whispering himself, and his little hand shook when he reached out and picked up the ring.  “You—you really promise?”

“Unh hunh.”  Ben looked down at the ring held between Poe’s fingers.  “Do you like it?  And. . . and will you wear it?  Will you promise me too?”

“Of c-course.”  Poe’s voice had a curious tremble to it, and when Ben looked back up at his face, he almost panicked because Poe looked like he was about to cry.

 _Oh shit oh shit oh shit, how did I fuck up this time?_ Ben thought, but before he could do anything else, Poe threw his arms back around his shoulders and pressed his face into Ben’s hair.

“I love it,” he mumbled.  “I love _you_.  I’ll never take it off, and I promise I’ll marry you.  I-I’d marry you _now_ , but my mom would kill us, and so would your mom, and. . . and yeah, we really should go to college first.”  He gave a chuckle that was half sniffle and sat back, pausing to kiss Ben’s cheek on the way.  “Will you put it on me?”

“Y-yeah.”  Ben took the ring back, despite fearing that he’d drop it, and got Poe’s left hand in his, then slipped the ring on Poe’s finger.  It had a round, orangish stone with iridescent gleams of yellow and red within it, and even in the dim lighting, Ben could see how lovely the thin gold band looked against Poe’s tan skin.

“It’s a fire opal,” Ben said, “since opal’s your birthstone.  And. . . well, since the colors look good on you.”

“I love it,” Poe repeated in a whisper.  He closed his fingers around Ben’s, then leaned up and kissed him softly.  “It’s the best present I’ve ever gotten.  I’m gonna get one for you too, for Christmas.”

“You don’t _have_ to,” mumbled Ben, even as he thought about how much he wanted to wear Poe’s ring.

“Maybe not, but I will.”  Poe let go of Ben’s hand to put his arms around the larger boy’s neck again.  He nuzzled Ben’s neck then kissed it, and Ben wrapped his arms back around Poe too.  Poe felt warm and soft in his arms, even in the somewhat scratchy, cheap fabric of his costume, and Ben held him close.  Poe tilted his head back and whispered, “Kiss me some more, Ben.”

Ben was happy to do so, and Poe kissed him back eagerly.  After a moment of kissing, Ben felt Poe’s hand return to his lap, first rubbing him then groping him as Ben started getting hard again.

“Nngh,” Ben groaned in between kisses.  “Poe, you look so good tonight in that dress.”  He put his own hand back on Poe’s thigh and squeezed it.  “I love your hot little legs and—and your pretty mouth in that lipstick.”

“ _You’re_ kinda wearing the lipstick too now,” Poe breathed against his lips.  He kissed Ben again, then whimpered when Ben slid his hand up under his skirt, “Touch me, please!”  Ben pushed his hand up further between Poe’s legs until he was rubbing Poe’s cock through his underwear.  Poe made a squawking sound—rather rooster-like, in fact—and pushed up into his hand.

“Yeah, just like that,” he whispered before they went back to kissing.  Ben lost track of how long they made out, kissing and touching each other, but after a while, he realized that he was as hard as Poe was, and his cock was throbbing in his pants under Poe’s hand.  Poe squirmed against the console separating their seats, then pulled back and gasped, “Can you put your seat back some?  I wanna sit in your lap.”

“Fuck, Poe,” Ben hissed.  He fumbled for the controls at the side of his seat and slid it back as far as it would go.  He began, “Okay, it’s—” but Poe was already scrambling over the console to straddle Ben’s lap with his legs folded on either side of Ben’s thighs.  He pushed his hands into Ben’s hair and crushed their mouths together again, and Ben reached up to grip the smaller boy’s ass in both hands.  Poe groaned and began grinding against Ben, rubbing their erections together through their clothes.  Ben groped Poe’s ass, then eventually worked his hands up under the smaller boy’s dress.  Poe wriggled on his lap, increasing both Ben’s pleasure and his frustration at having clothing between them.

Just when Ben thought he couldn’t take it much more, Poe pressed his mouth to his ear and whispered, “Ben, take me home.  I want to get in bed with you, and—”  He hesitated then hissed, “I wanna do it, I want you to fuck me.”

Ben nearly choked.  “Y-you want—really?”  He put a hand in Poe’s hair and tugged it gently so that Poe drew back enough to see his face.  Poe’s eyes were wide and looking at Ben in just the way he’d always wanted Poe to look at him.

“Are you sure, baby?” Ben whispered.  “I want you—God, I want you so _bad_ , but I don’t want to do anything you’re not ready for.  And—and don’t feel like you have to because. . . because of this.”  He put his hand over Poe’s and the ring.  Poe smiled and shook his head.

“No, it’s not just ‘cos of that.  And I’m sure.”  Poe rubbed up against him again, slowly this time, and murmured, “I love you, Ben, and I want us to be together that way, too.”

“Okay,” breathed Ben.  It was _more_ than okay, but at the same time, he was nervous all over again.

 _What if I’m not good enough?_ he wondered as Poe crawled back into the passenger seat and buckled his seat beat.  _What if I can’t make him feel good?  Or what if it hurts and he never wants to do it again?_   But then he glanced over at Poe and saw his boyfriend looking back.  Poe gave him a shy, adoring smile, and Ben managed to relax, at least a little.

\--

To be continued


	24. Chapter 24

Poe’s mom had left the porch light on for them, but otherwise the house was dark and quiet when Ben pulled into the Damerons’ driveway.  Poe unlocked the front door after admiring their jack o’lantern again, then locked up once they were inside.

“Let me go see if Mom’s light is out,” Poe whispered.  He crept across the living room to peek into the little hall leading to his mother’s room, then came back grinning.  “Yeah, that’s good—probably means she’s asleep.”

“I just hope your brother is too,” Ben muttered.  Poe made a face at him but grabbed his hand and tugged him through the dim house to his own room.

“His light’s off.”  Poe pointed at B.B.’s closed door.  “As long as we’re not too loud, it’ll be okay.”  Poe opened the door to his room and started to follow Ben inside but then hung back when Ben turned on the light.

Ben looked back at him and asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.  Just—just nervous.”  Poe exhaled and looked up at Ben.

“It’s okay, me too,” Ben reassured him.  Poe gave him a quick smile but still didn’t come into the room.

“I’m uh. . . I’m gonna go wash up,” he mumbled.  In the light from his room, Ben could see Poe blush.

“Oh okay, yeah.”  Ben nodded.  “I’ll be. . . uh, in here.”  He gestured at the interior of Poe’s room then let his arm fall to his side, thinking, _I sound so stupid._   But Poe smiled again, bigger this time.

“Be right back,” he said before disappearing into the bathroom across the hall.

Ben closed the door to Poe’s bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed to take off his shoes.  As he did so, he started to realize how woefully unprepared he was for what they were about to do.  He hadn’t brought lube or condoms—in fact, Ben didn’t _own_ any lube or condoms since he was too embarrassed to buy them, and anyway, Poe hadn’t brought up going all the way since their prom night.

 _So what gave him the idea now?_ Ben wondered. _Unless he’s been thinking about it the whole time. . . like I have._  Ben had been doing more than thinking about it; he’d researched the subject fairly thoroughly online, not to mention fantasized about it happening in a thousand different ways.  Fantasizing was one thing, though, and actually going through with it. . . that was something else entirely.

Ben got up and went barefoot over to where he’d left his bag.  After digging around in it a minute, he found the baby oil he’d brought for taking off their eye makeup.  He decided that if it was good enough lube for fingering, it’d be good enough for sex too, but there wasn’t anything he could do about the lack of condoms except hope that Poe was okay with not using any.

He jumped when Poe opened the door again.  The smaller boy chuckled at Ben’s nervousness as he came in and locked the door behind him.

“Shut up,” Ben muttered, “you’d be as freaked out as I would if your mom came in right now.”

“Mom’s not coming in,” Poe retorted.  He turned on a small reading lamp on his nightstand and switched off the overhead light.

“Yeah, then why’d you lock the door?” challenged Ben.

“‘Cos—‘cos it’d be dumb to tempt fate,” Poe muttered.  “Stop being a jerk.”  He stood by the bed with his arms wrapped around his chest, kind of protectively, and glared at Ben.

“I’m not—okay, okay, sorry.”  Ben took a deep breath and reminded himself that being nervous wasn’t any reason to hurt Poe’s feelings.  He said more sincerely, “I’m sorry, baby,” and put his arms around Poe.  Poe made an indignant noise but hugged Ben anyway, and a second later, Ben felt the smaller boy cuddling closer and nuzzling his neck.

“What’s the oil for?” Poe murmured.  “You wanna take off our makeup first?”

“No, you still look hot in it.  Even with it smeared all over your face,” Ben teased him.  He tilted Poe’s chin up with his free hand and kissed his red-stained lips.  Poe’s eyeliner had gotten smudged too, but the smoky effect just made his brown eyes look even sexier than usual.

“It’s smeared all over yours too, stork,” Poe informed him.  He tightened his arms around Ben’s waist and rubbed up against him.  “So if the oil isn’t for taking our makeup off, why are you still holding it?”

Ben felt his face grow warm, and he wondered if Poe were really that clueless. . . until he took a good look at the playful expression in those sexy brown eyes.  When Poe saw that he had Ben’s full attention, he slowly sucked his lower lip into his mouth, bit down on it, and pulled it back out through his teeth before pursing his lips slightly.  Ben’s erection had already begun to resurface, and as he watched what Poe was doing with his lips, it promptly returned in full force.  Nearly all of his nervousness dissolved, too: Poe clearly wanted Ben as much as Ben wanted him.

 _And it’s going to be good,_ Ben thought, _whatever we do and however we do it.  Anything I do with him has to be good._

He let go of Poe’s chin and put his hand down to grip Poe’s hip instead as he whispered, “I’m holding the oil ‘cos I’m about to rub it all over my dick.”

“Yeah?”  Poe slid his own hand down between Ben’s legs and squeezed.  “And then what’re you gonna do?”

Ben had to fight back a groan when Poe squeezed him, but he managed to choke out an answer: “Then I’m g-gonna—gonna put it in my hot little boyfriend.”  He bent his head and caught Poe’s mouth again, kissing him deeply before almost growling, “I’m gonna make you feel so good, Poe, I promise.”

“Mmmn, Ben,” Poe hissed.  He backed up to the side of his bed, pulling Ben after him by the hand gripping his crotch; then Poe let go and grasped the bottom of his dress instead.  He was about to pull it off when Ben grabbed his wrist to stop him.

“No, leave it on,” he begged.  “You look so hot in it.  Just take your underwear off.”  Poe’s face turned red, but he nodded and pulled the hem of the dress up to his waist.  Ben stared as Poe hesitated, then stripped off his underwear before quickly tugging the dress down again.  When Ben tried to tug the dress back up, Poe scolded him and pushed his hands away.

“Nunh unh, you gotta take your pants off first.  And your shirt,” Poe informed Ben.  He sat down on the edge of the bed and started unbuttoning Ben’s pants.  Ben decided he’d better bring up the condoms now, before he got too distracted, and he drew in a shaky breath.

“Uh, Poe?  I don’t. . . I don’t have any condoms.  Do you?”  Poe stopped with his hands on Ben’s waist and looked up at him.

“No.”  He shook his head.  “Do—do you think we have to have them?”

“No,” Ben said, too quickly since he was terrified Poe would decide they _did_ have to have them.  He took another breath and said more calmly, “I mean. . . they’d be for you more than for me, since we’re both—um, neither of us has ever. . . done it before.”  Poe’s heavy eyebrows shifted slightly, making the faint crease appear between them that showed up whenever he was worried or confused.

“Hunh?”

Ben laughed, which relaxed him a little more; then he sat down beside Poe on the bed and hugged him again.

“I mean, we’re both virgins, right?” Ben murmured.  “And I’ve never done _anything_ with anybody but you.  So I’m, uh, I’m clean.”

“Oh.  Yeah, me too,” Poe said.  “I, uh. . . well, I’d kissed a couple girls before we kissed for the first time.  But I’ve never done anything _else_ with anybody but you, I promise.”  He looked up at Ben with another slightly mischievous smile.  “And I don’t think you can get me pregnant, so why’d you say using a condom would be for _me_?”

Ben had snickered again at the pregnancy joke, but he stopped at Poe’s question and mumbled, “I mean. . . I dunno if you want me to, um, to come in you.  I can try to pull out, but—but that’s why I. . . I said that.”

“Oh.”  Poe looked down, and Ben’s heart nearly stopped, but then Poe tightened his arms around Ben’s shoulders and leaned up to whisper against his ear, “I want you to come in me, Ben.  I’ve thought about it, over and over—feeling you come in me.”

“Fuck, Poe,” Ben whispered back, helplessly.  Poe let go of Ben’s shoulders with one arm so he could push his hand into Ben’s opened pants and grope him, until Ben’s breathing had become ragged and he was thrusting into Poe’s hand through his underwear.  Finally Poe pulled his hand out and tugged down Ben’s pants, then stepped back.

“Take everything off,” Poe ordered, and Ben set down the oil on Poe’s nightstand before scrambling to comply.  He felt a little weird getting completely naked while Poe still had part of his costume on, but when he saw how intently Poe was watching him undress, Ben felt kind of proud too.

 _He really does like how I look,_ Ben realized as he stepped out of his underwear then stripped off his jacket and shirt.  _He wants me just the way I am. . . ._   Poe confirmed that by pushing Ben back down to sit on the bed and straddling the larger boy’s lap, the way he had in the car.  This time, though, Poe hiked his dress up around his hips so that their bare bodies rubbed against one another as he wrapped his arms around Ben and started kissing him again.  Ben slid his hands up under Poe’s dress to grip his ass and hold Poe steady as Ben ground their cocks together between their abdomens.

“Nngh!” Poe whimpered through their kiss.  Ben held him tighter then suddenly flipped them both over, rolling Poe up onto the middle of the bed and pinning him down.  When he broke the kiss, Ben looked down at Poe’s pretty face with a smirk.

“Jerk!” Poe gasped.  He writhed under Ben and clutched at his back as Ben pressed his mouth to the side of Poe’s neck and started kissing his way downward until the neckline of the dress got in his way.  Ben slid down the length of Poe’s torso and resumed kissing just below his waist, where the skirt was pushed up.  Poe whined and squirmed, trying to get his cock under Ben’s lips, but Ben avoided it and nibbled his stomach instead.

He did have a plan; he wasn’t deliberately teasing Poe to be difficult.  Ben just wanted his boyfriend to be desperate for him.  From his. . . research online, Ben had reached the conclusion that Poe should be both turned on and relaxed at the same time for what they wanted to do.  As much as Ben’s erection was insisting that it needed to be inside Poe as soon as possible, he also wanted to wait until he had done some other things to Poe first.

Meanwhile, Poe had resulted to pulling on handfuls of Ben’s hair, trying to direct his mouth as he whined, “Ben, pleeeeease!”  Ben finally relented and put his mouth over the head of Poe’s cock to suck it.  Ben tasted a faint hint of soap, which told him what kind of “washing up” Poe had done before returning to his bedroom.  The fact that Poe had been worried about something like being clean enough was so cute, it made Ben love him more than ever.

Ben went down on Poe a few minutes before pulling off again and trailing kisses down the underside of his shaft.  Poe kept making soft whimpering noises as Ben sucked, licked, and kissed him; then Ben sat up again and looked down at his prone boyfriend.  Poe stared back up at him, pupils wide and tan body exposed to the waist by his hiked-up dress.

Ben ran his hands up the outside of Poe’s thighs to his hips and whispered, “Turn over.”  He saw Poe’s throat work as he swallowed.

“Are you gonna do it now?” Poe asked.  He wasn’t quite whispering, but he sounded hoarse, and Ben was glad he could honestly say no.

“Not yet.  Just turn over, baby.”

Poe let out his held breath in a huff and mumbled, “Okay,” before rolling over onto his stomach.  His dress was still down partway in back, covering most of his backside, and Ben resisted the urge to push it up.  He grabbed a pillow instead and slid an arm under Poe’s waist to lift him up enough to shove the pillow between him and the bed.

“What’re you—ugh, Ben, now my butt is in the air!” Poe grumbled, turning his head to glower at Ben over his shoulder.  “I look like a slut.”

Ben snickered and argued, “No, you don’t.  You look fuckin’ hot though.”  He put his hands back on Poe’s thighs, this time on the backs right above his knees, and drew them up until they rested just below his ass.  Poe made a “hmph” noise and laid his head down, but the little wiggle of pleasure he gave in response to Ben’s touch didn’t escape the larger boy’s notice.  Ben grinned and finally pushed Poe’s skirt up to his waist in back, then started massaging his ass with both hands.

“Nngh, Ben,” Poe breathed.  He squirmed again, clearly thrusting against the pillow under him.

“Don’t make yourself come before I even get started,” Ben teased him.

“I’m _not_ ,” complained Poe.  “You really do think I’m a slut, don’t you?”  His tone was playful, but Ben wondered if it might be hiding a real worry.

“Of course not, baby,” he told Poe gently.  Ben reclined on his own stomach behind Poe and started caressing Poe’s spread thighs while still rubbing his ass.  “I love you,” he mumbled against the warm skin his lips were touching.

“Love you too,” Poe whispered.  His body relaxed, although he still twitched from time to time as if he were having to fight the urge to grind against the pillow.  After a couple minutes of Ben kissing and rubbing, Poe asked in a sultry, and hopeful, whisper, “You gonna finger me?”

“In a little bit, yeah,” Ben told him.  He’d kissed his way up Poe’s left thigh, almost to his balls, and he stopped to nuzzle them with his mouth.  Poe gasped, “Ooh!” and arched his back.  Ben went on, “I’ve only ever used two fingers before—think you can handle three?”  He said it playfully, since Poe had _better_ be able to if he was going to handle Ben’s cock, but Poe squirmed eagerly just the same.

“God, yes,” he whined.  “Please, go on and do it, Ben, _please_!”

“Nunh unh, not yet.”  Ben smiled at the frustrated noise Poe made and started licking his balls instead.  Poe’s complaints faded to whimpers, then another choked gasp when Ben spread his ass with both hands and suddenly flicked his tongue up.

“ _Ben!_ ” Poe fairly shrieked before he lowered his voice.  “What’re you—oh _fuck_!”

Ben had never rimmed Poe before—not for lack of wanting to, but because he was afraid Poe would be too embarrassed to go for it.  But now, Ben reasoned, if he was about to stick his dick up Poe’s ass, Poe didn’t have cause to be embarrassed about much of anything.

Poe managed it all the same, though, wailing in an agonized whisper, “B-ben, you—you’re not—you’re not gonna lick me th-there—”  Ben held back a frustrated groan of his own and lifted his head.

“Do you want me to stop?” he asked as gently as he could manage.  “I’ll just finger you instead if you don’t want me to rim you.”

“I, I—you don’t _want_ to—to rim me, do you?” Poe stammered.

“Fuck yes I want to,” Ben breathed.  He bent his head to kiss the small of Poe’s back and murmur against it, “I won’t do it if you say no, but I _want_ to do it.”

“Ben!” Poe hissed.  He arched his back again, pushing his ass up.  Ben smirked and kissed Poe again, a little bit lower.

“Do you want me to stop?” he whispered, now sure of the answer.  “Or do you want me to keep going?”

“Ben, please. . . .”  When Poe didn’t continue, Ben flicked his tongue into the top of the cleft of his ass.  Poe gasped.

“Please what?  Do you want me to rim you?”  Ben licked the cleft, slower.  Poe tasted like soap there, too, but also salty like the sweat that had beaded up on his back.  “Do you want me to lick you _there_?”

Poe choked out a soft, “Yes!  I’ve—I’ve thought about it, a lot, but—but I was scared to ask.  I thought you’d say it was gross.”

“You thought about it, hunh, rooster?” Ben asked as he spread Poe’s ass again with his hands.

“Y-yeah. . . .”

Ben lowered his head and licked Poe slowly, dragging his tongue from the top of his balls upward.  Poe made a strangled whining noise he’d never made before.

“That’s what you want me to do to you?” Ben whispered.  “Just like that?”

“Yeah. . . yeah!”  Poe’s whimpers turned to moans as Ben started licking him in earnest, first up and down and then in circles.  Poe writhed and squirmed blissfully, sometimes bucking hard against his pillow until he really did get close to coming; then he’d stop and hold still except for a trembling he couldn’t prevent.

“Ben, please, more!” he groaned after a few minutes.  “It feels so good!”

“You want more, baby, you want me to eat your tight little ass?” Ben growled.  Poe squealed, “Yes!” so loudly, Ben worried for a second that someone might overhear, but then Poe pressed his mouth against the blanket to muffle himself, and Ben did what he wanted.  It turned Ben on so much, he had to use all his willpower not to thrust against the bed himself.  When he knew he wouldn’t be able to resist much longer, he drew back.

“Poe,” he panted, “I wanna fuck you, I need it.”

“Do it,” Poe moaned into the blanket.  “Please, I want you so bad.”  After hearing Poe ask for it like that, Ben barely had the presence of mind to grab the bottle of oil from the nightstand, but he was afraid of hurting Poe if they didn’t use any lube but his spit.

“Just a minute, baby, I said I was gonna finger you, remember?” Ben muttered.  He upturned the bottle and dripped oil onto Poe’s ass.

“Do it quick,” Poe commanded, squirming when the cooler oil touched his heated skin.  Ben fumbled the bottle back onto the nightstand and trailed his middle finger through the oil before pushing it slowly into Poe’s ass.  It sank in without any resistance; the rimjob had made Poe relax and loosen up as promised by the sex guides Ben had consulted.  Poe sighed with pleasure while Ben thrust his finger in and out a few times.  Ben pulled his hand back, pressed his second finger against the third, and pushed them both in.  That felt a little tighter, but not much, and Poe bucked his ass back to meet Ben’s hand.

“More!” he demanded.

“Just a minute!”  Ben was still sufficiently afraid of hurting Poe to keep from giving in right away, and he fingered Poe a minute more before pulling out again and pressing three fingers together.

As he worked his fingertips in, he asked, “Is that okay, baby?  It’s a lot tighter.”

“Yeah, I’m okay, put ‘em in,” Poe mumbled.  He groaned into the blanket when Ben slowly pressed his fingers forward, but his ass stretched to accommodate them, and when Ben asked if it hurt at all, Poe shook his head.  Still, Ben worked him with the three fingers for several minutes, despite the insistent throbbing of his own erection.  Only when Poe began arching again to meet his thrusts and moaning with pleasure did Ben decide he really was ready.

“I’m—I’m gonna do it, okay, baby?” he whispered hoarsely.

Poe whispered back, “Yeah.  Do it, Ben, I want you to do it.”  Ben twisted his fingers in Poe’s ass a final time, then pulled them out and wrapped his hand around his cock to pump it a little, coating it with the baby oil and the precum he was leaking.  Poe whined impatiently and rocked his ass up.  He hadn’t closed up all the way after all the rimming and fingering, and Ben thought he could have come just from seeing Poe like that.

Ben swallowed and coaxed Poe to raise up on his knees; then he shifted to kneel behind Poe with one hand gripping his ass and the other wrapped around his own shaft to steady it.  He pressed the flushed head of his cock against Poe and pushed in as slowly as he could.  Like Ben’s finger, it started going in without any resistance, but then it hit the inner ring of muscle, and Poe clamped down with a gasp.

“Relax, baby,” Ben murmured, although his voice was shaking.  “And bear down a little.  It’ll be easi—oh _fuck_!” he cried out when the resistance in Poe’s ass suddenly gave way and his cock sank in a couple inches.  Ben had never felt anything so hot, or so tight, before.

Poe whimpered, “Ben!  Stay right there a minute!”  Ben felt Poe’s muscles flutter as he clenched; the pressure was almost enough to make Ben come, and he had to force himself to relax as much as Poe was having to.

“Does it hurt?  Do you want me to stop?” Ben asked.

“No, don’t stop,” Poe whispered.  “Just—just don’t move yet.  Nngh, it _burns_.”

“I’m sorry, baby.  Are you sure you don’t want me to pull out?”  Ben was about to do so regardless until Poe shook his head rapidly.

“No, i-it’s getting better.  I’m getting used to it.”  The fluttering of Poe’s muscles stilled, and he let out a shaky laugh.  “It didn’t hurt at all the way I thought it would, it just burned some, but now—”  He broke off and actually pushed back a little, enough to take another half inch of Ben’s cock in.  “Now it’s feeling good.  Go on, put more in.”

“Okay. . . .”  Still unsure, Ben let go of his shaft to grip Poe’s hips with both hands, and he thrust in slowly.  The sight of more than half of his cock disappearing into Poe’s ass was probably the hottest thing he’d ever seen, and the eagerness of Poe’s reaction soon had him convinced that Poe really did like it.

“You feel so big,” Poe breathed.  “Is it all in?”

Ben nearly chuckled.  “No, there’s like—two more inches.”

“Shit,” Poe breathed, “put it all in.  I want it, Ben, all of it!”

“Fuck yeah, Poe,” Ben hissed as he pushed forward, this time with less trepidation.  The rest of his cock sank in, until his abdomen was pressed up against Poe’s ass.  “That’s it, baby, you took it all,” Ben told Poe, who was making soft “mmm” noises and rubbing his ass back against Ben with little circular motions.

“Oh God, it feels so good in me, I feel so full,” Poe groaned.  He clenched his muscles around Ben’s cock, deliberately this time, and Ben whimpered with pleasure himself.  Now Poe laughed as he cooed, “You like it, stork, you like me riding your dick?”  Usually Ben was the one to talk dirty, and hearing Poe say something like that nearly drove him crazy.

“Yeah,” Ben said, “I _love_ it, you feel so—so fuckin’ _good_.”

“Then fuck me,” Poe nearly growled.  Ben pulled back a few inches and slid forward again until he couldn’t go any deeper.  Poe groaned an encouraging “Yes!”, and Ben started thrusting in earnest.  The heat and pressure of Poe’s ass enveloping his cock was like nothing Ben had ever experienced, or even imagined, and he was so lost in ecstasy, he didn’t recognize the signs of an impending orgasm until it was too late for him to stop it.

 _Oh shit, no not yet—_ was as far as Ben’s thoughts got before he started to climax, after only a few thrusts.  Then he gave in and let it happen, groaning from deep in his chest and closing his eyes as he came the hardest he could ever remember coming.  When he’d finished, Ben shuddered one last time before opening his eyes.

“Ben, did you—did you just come?” Poe gasped.

“Y-yeah, I—fuck, I’m sorry, Poe,” Ben sighed miserably.  “I—I couldn’t stop it, I. . . _fuck_.”  Despite the pleasure he’d experienced, Ben didn’t think he’d ever been so humiliated before in his life. . . but then he realized his cock was still buried in Poe, and still partially hard.  Maybe it wasn’t all over yet, after all.

“Baby, it’s okay,” Poe reassured him, “it’s fine.  It felt really good, you coming in me.”

“You could feel it?”  When Poe nodded, Ben leaned forward over his back and wrapped one arm around Poe’s chest, supporting his weight on the bed with the other arm.  He kissed Poe’s shoulder and the side of his neck before whispering to him, “I think I can get hard again.  Just keep talking—tell me what it felt like.”

“It felt hot,” Poe murmured.  His neck was hot too, heat radiating off his skin against Ben’s cheek.  “I couldn’t feel you, uh, shooting, but it felt warm deep inside me. . . it still does.”  He pushed back against Ben’s abdomen and thighs, and Ben groaned at the sensation.  He heard Poe draw in his breath then whisper, “You’re getting hard again, aren’t you?  I feel it getting bigger in me.”

“Yeah, I’m—nngh, Poe. . . .”  Ben started thrusting again, slowly, as he stiffened completely.  Now he wasn’t nearly as sensitive, and he sped up his thrusts without being afraid of coming again too soon.  Poe made a low moaning noise through his teeth and kept pushing against him, until he was rocking back as hard as Ben was rocking forward.

“God, yeah, Ben, give it to me,” he panted.  His words degenerated into incoherent sounds of pleasure that got progressively louder, until Ben started to worry about Poe’s brother overhearing from across the hall.  Ben stopped moving again, holding himself deep inside Poe who kept grinding back against him.

“Don’t stop!” Poe gasped.  “Why’d you—”

Ben brought his hand up over Poe’s mouth and hissed, “Baby, shh!  You’re getting loud, someone’s gonna hear you.”

“Mmngh!” Poe growled indignantly, but then he nodded.  Ben uncovered his mouth and slid his hand between Poe’s body and the pillow to find Poe’s erection.  It was leaking precum and so hard, it curved upward and almost touched his stomach.  When Ben closed his fingers around it, Poe whined and thrust into his hand.

“Please, fuck me some more,” he begged in a whisper.  “I’ll be quiet, I promise!”  At Ben’s next thrust, Poe grunted and dropped his head, crushing his mouth against the blanket to muffle his cries.  Ben grinned and fucked him harder.  Poe kept making noises—and Ben didn’t think there could be a sexier sound in the entire world—but they were too soft for there to be any danger of someone else overhearing.  Ben made a few noises himself at the feeling of Poe’s muscles clenching and grinding around him.  He tried to stroke Poe’s erection in time to his thrusts, and when he managed to get into a rhythm of doing that, he shifted his hips to angle his cock farther downward so it would press on Poe’s prostate as Ben slid in and out.

Ben knew he’d found his target when Poe squealed into the blanket and bucked his hips up to meet Ben’s next thrust.  Ben leaned forward and pressed his own lips to Poe’s back as he concentrated on making his boyfriend come.

Poe grunted, “Nngh, nnnnngh, nngh!” as Ben fucked him; then Ben felt the smaller boy’s body tense up beneath him.  Poe began to tremble then shudder, and he clamped down so tight around Ben’s cock, it almost hurt.  Ben gasped against Poe’s neck and kept thrusting as much as he could while Poe’s erection throbbed and twitched in his hand.

When Ben had fantasized about having sex with Poe, he’d always imagined them coming at the same time, but it didn’t happen that way thanks to Ben’s earlier orgasm.  Yet even though Ben couldn’t come again so soon, he loved feeling Poe climaxing against him.  Ben slowed his thrusts, then stopped completely when he realized Poe had finished.  Poe slumped forward over the pillow and panted for breath with his cheek pressed against the bed.  One last, weak tremble moved through his body as Ben kissed his neck ardently.

“Mmm, Poe,” he breathed against the curls of dark brown hair that fell over Poe’s ear, “I love you, baby, I love you so much.”

“Ben. . . l-love, love you too. . . .”  Poe turned his head, trying to kiss Ben’s mouth, but couldn’t quite reach it.  “Did—did you come again?”

“Nunh unh.  I just wanted to make _you_ come.”  Ben started to slide out of him, but to his surprise, Poe clenched his muscles to hold him in.

“No, keep going,” Poe whispered.  “I want you to come again.  Inside me.”

Ben almost protested, despite the invitation, but then Poe clenched around him again.  It felt so good, Ben gave in and resumed his thrusting.  He raised up on his knees and clutched Poe’s hips, then looked down.  The sight of Poe with his legs splayed and dress hitched up to his waist was so hot, it didn’t take Ben very long to come again, after all.  When he had finished, he finally pulled out as carefully as he could, then lay down beside Poe and pulled him into his arms.

“You okay, baby?” Ben murmured.  “I didn’t—I didn’t hurt you any, did I?”

“No.  I’m okay.”  Poe turned his head to look at Ben.  He was beaming.  “More than okay.  It was so, _so_ good.”  He wrapped his arms around Ben and nestled against his chest.

“It was amazing,” Ben told him in between kisses to Poe’s sweaty hair.  “ _You’re_ amazing.  So hot, so. . . fuck, Poe, I can’t believe you’re _my_ boyfriend.”

Poe laughed, hard.  “Ben, baby, I wanna be your boyfriend forever.”  Then he shifted to look back up at Ben and lifted his left hand—the one still wearing the promise ring.  “Forever until I’m your husband.”

Ben grasped Poe’s hand, closed his eyes, and kissed the slender fingers beneath the ring because he didn’t trust himself to speak.

\--

The next morning, Ben woke up before Poe did.  It took Ben a minute to remember where he was—first that he had spent the night with Poe, then what he had _done_ with Poe.  Ben felt himself break into a large, involuntary grin.

Before they’d fallen asleep, they had pulled on their shorts (and Poe had pulled _off_ his dress) and snuck to the bathroom to clean themselves up, which included taking off what little smudged makeup remained on their faces.  Back in the bedroom, Poe sleepily grumbled about having to do extra laundry as he stripped off his pillowcase and, after a quick examination, the blanket.  They were warm enough cuddled together in bed even with just a sheet over them, and so tired they fell asleep right away.

Now Poe was curled up facing Ben, dark lashes dusting his cheeks and his lips slightly parted.  His left hand rested on the bed near his chin, and he still wore Ben’s ring on it.  Poe looked so beautiful, Ben felt the same sense of unbelief he had the night before.

 _He really wants to be with me forever,_ Ben marveled.  He stroked Poe’s hair back from his face and slid closer to kiss his boyfriend’s forehead.  Poe shifted at his touch and then drowsily slipped his arms around Ben’s chest.

“G’morning,” Poe mumbled.  Ben felt Poe’s lips brush a kiss against his breastbone and trail upward until they reached Ben’s mouth.

“I thought roosters were supposed to crow in the morning,” Ben teased after they kissed.

“You wanna know how to make me crow?”  Poe craned his neck to whisper in Ben’s ear, “Fuck me again.”

“Damn, Poe,” hissed Ben.  “You really want me to?  Right _now_?”

Poe drew back and smiled as he looked at Ben from under half-lowered eyelids and asked, “Do _you_ want to?”

“ _Yeah_ I do,” Ben breathed.  He pulled Poe closer, kissed him again, and slid a hand down over his hip. . . then groaned when someone pounded on Poe’s door.

A second later, B.B. bellowed from outside, “ _Poe!_   Are you gonna sleep all day?  It’s almost ten!”

“Ugh,” muttered Ben.  Poe chuckled and sighed at the same time, then pushed himself up into a sitting position.

“Sorry.  I guess we’re not doing it again right now after all—” he began, but B.B. interrupted again.

“ _Poe!!!_ ”

“All right, I’m getting up!” Poe shouted.  “Hold on, we’ll be out in a minute!”  Ben grumbled as he sat up too and swung his legs over the side of the bed.  But then Poe wrapped his arms around Ben’s shoulders and hugged him close.

“I really am sorry,” he whispered, and Ben melted inside.

“It’s okay, baby.”  Ben turned to hug Poe tightly; then he asked, “Hey, think you can come over to _my_ house later today?  No little brothers there. . . .”  Poe laughed again and kissed the end of Ben’s nose.

“I think maybe I could,” he said.  After his laughter faded, Poe added more soberly, “Thank you for putting up with B.B. last night, Ben.  You really did make him happy, dressing up and coming with us.”

“I’m. . . I’m glad,” mumbled Ben.  “I want him to like me, because you love him so much—and _I_ love _you_.”

“I know,” whispered Poe.  “I love you too.”

As they got up and pulled on their clothes, Ben asked, “Are you gonna leave your ring on?  I. . . was wondering if you were gonna tell your mom about it.”  Poe’s cheeks flushed a little, but he nodded.

“I’m not _ever_ taking it off.  And if she asks about it, I’ll tell her.  Her _and_ B.B.”  Once they were dressed, Poe hugged Ben again then looked up at him.  “What about your parents?  Will you tell them?”

Ben rolled his eyes.  “My dad probably wouldn’t notice if you came over in a wedding dress.  But yeah, Mom’ll grill me about it if she sees the ring on you.  And. . . and I’ll tell her the truth.”  He squeezed Poe tightly then looked down into his pretty eyes.  “I’ll tell her that I’m gonna marry you one day.  Know why?”

Still smiling, Poe raised his eyebrows.  “Why?”

“‘Cos,” said Ben.  “B.B. was right about us being like Jack and Sally.  And not because I don’t deserve you, even if I don’t.”

Poe scolded him, “Of course you deserve me!” then lay his head against Ben’s shoulder with a blissful smile.  “But I know what you mean.  We _are_ like Jack and Sally. . . because we’re simply meant to be.”

\--

To be continued


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was written for a Tumblr request.

Ben didn’t want to go fishing.  He especially didn’t want to go fishing with his dorky uncles _and_ Poe’s little brother tagging along.  But Uncle Luke had suggested that Ben and Poe take his boat out during Spring Break, and of course he had suggested it in front of Poe, and of course Poe was thrilled with the idea of doing something he’d never done before and dragging Ben along with him.  And Luke offered to take the day off work so he could tow the boat for them, and if Luke was taking off work, of course his husband Wedge insisted on doing so as well.  And because Poe’s mom _couldn’t_ just take off work whenever she wanted to, Poe was stuck babysitting B.B. all week while school was out.

And because it was their last Spring Break together before they left for different colleges, and because Poe was so excited about it, and because Ben wasn’t going to miss spending time with his adorable boyfriend if he could help it, all five of them ended up at the park early one afternoon.  Luke and Wedge promised they didn’t mind hanging out with B.B. on the playground near the lake so that Ben and Poe could be alone.

“As long as you don’t need help with the boat,” Luke added when they got there and were hauling the boat off its trailer and into the water.  “Or the fishing rods.  Do you even remember how to fish?”

“ _Yes_ I remember how to fish,” Ben grumbled.  “You and Grandpa dragged me out here often enough when I was a kid.”  He hadn’t liked fishing then either, but he’d always idolized his grandfather, and hanging around Uncle Luke had been better than hanging around his own dad.  Ben glanced down at Poe, who was fairly bouncing up and down with excitement, and wondered why the two people he loved better than anyone else in the world had both ended up wanting to _fish_.

_First Grandpa, and now Poe_ , Ben sulked once he and his boyfriend were out on the water.  _At least this is probably the only time Poe’ll want to do it._   Poe looked up at him then with such a cute smile on his pretty tan face that Ben could only smile back helplessly and decide he’d do his best to catch something. . . in memory of his grandfather of course, not just to impress Poe.

“This is so cool,” Poe gushed as he tried to bait the hook of the fishing pole Wedge had lent him.  They were using fake worms ( _Thank God,_ Ben thought), but Poe still had trouble.  “I know most guys have been fishing before, but my dad never took me even when he was still around.  And. . . it’s not really a mom thing, I guess?”

“My mom went with us a few times,” Ben muttered as he baited his own hook, pricked his thumb on it, then swore and stuck the thumb in his mouth.  “But yeah, I guess maybe it’s supposed to be a father-son bonding experience.”  He scowled and flicked his hook into the water without bothering to cast it properly; his thumb hurt, and thinking about fathers and sons bonding only made him grumpier.  He could catch a fish later, when he was through sulking.

But then Poe, who still hadn’t managed to get his squishy fake worm on the hook, dropped his hands in his lap and looked up at Ben with a sorrowful frown that was just this side of a pout.

“Look, I know you don’t really wanna be here,” Poe murmured.  “It’s just something we’ve never done before, you know?  And I thought—”

Poe didn’t even have to finish the sentence before Ben gave in.  He let his hunched up shoulders slump as he smiled at his boyfriend and leaned forward across the boat to put his hand over Poe’s.

“I’m sorry, baby,” Ben whispered.  “I’m not crazy about fishing, but I want to be wherever you are.  And I can enjoy just about anything as long as you’re with me.”  His conciliation was rewarded not only by a brilliant smile but also by a soft kiss on the cheek that made Ben’s chest feel as warm as the spring sunshine beaming down on them.

“Thanks,” Poe murmured in Ben’s ear as he gave it a nuzzle for good measure; then he returned to struggling with his hook.  He finally got it baited and did his best to cast it into the water, but no fish so much as nibbled at the bait.  After they’d sat there for a while, Ben sighed and reached for the oars.

He grumbled, “Gonna have to try a different spot,” as he jerked his chin toward a shady area some distance away, around a bend in the lakeshore.  “I think we always used to catch stuff over there.”

“Here, let me help row!” gushed Poe.  He actually made things more difficult because Ben had to teach him how to do it, then they had to figure out how to row together, but they finally got the boat to the new spot.  Ben liked it better over there anyway, out of the sun. . . and out of the sight of his uncles and Poe’s brother back on the other shore.

Ben cast his line properly that time, and Poe did a better job than he had the first time.  A fish tugged on Poe’s line after just a few minutes, and Poe broke into another grin.

“I think I got one!” he cried—a bit quieter than normal since Ben had told him loud talking would scare off the fish—and he started trying to reel in the line.  The fish was having none of it and began to struggle.

“Shoot!” Poe hissed.  As always, the way he avoided swearing made Ben smile, but Ben also saw an opportunity to impress Poe without even catching a fish himself.

“Here, lemme show you how to do it,” Ben urged.  He carefully shifted toward Poe’s end of the boat to sit just behind the smaller boy, then reached both arms around Poe to grasp the rod above his hands.  Ben instructed, “Now reel it in while I hold it steady and help you pull.”  Poe did so, and together, they easily brought in a fairly substantial bass—nothing huge, but nothing to be ashamed of, either.

“Not bad,” Ben observed, squeezing Poe a little bit between his upper arms in a sort of hug.  Poe had dragged the flopping fish up over the side of the boat, but now he let it drop to the bottom, and Ben could feel his breathing quicken.

Ben’s chin had been resting on Poe’s shoulder as he leaned forward, but he turned his mouth toward his boyfriend’s face to ask, “What’s wrong, baby?”  Poe’s cheek felt warm, with heat radiating off it onto Ben’s lips.

“N-nothing’s wrong,” Poe mumbled.  “You just. . . uh, your arms feel really nice around me like that.  We haven’t really been alone together in a couple days, and. . . yeah.”

“Oh.”  Ben swallowed hard.  He hadn’t even thought about that, or that putting his arms around Poe was anything but a helpful and sweet-in-a-manly-way gesture.  But now he realized how nice Poe’s trim little body felt in his arms, how soft his hair felt brushing Ben’s face, and even how nice Poe smelled.  Ben glanced up in the direction of the playground to make sure they really were hidden from view; then he let go of the fishing rod with one hand so he could put it against Poe’s stomach instead and hug the smaller boy even tighter.

“Yeah,” he whispered into Poe’s ear.  “This does feel pretty nice.”  He pressed his lips to Poe’s earlobe (why the hell was everything about Poe so cute, even his ears?), then sucked it gently between them.  Ben had always hated how full and somewhat feminine his lips were, but Poe loved them, and now he gave a most satisfactory groan at feeling them on his ear.

“B-ben!” he whimpered.  “Wh-what—what about the fish?”

“Oh,” Ben muttered again.  He lifted his head enough to look down at the bass, now quieter but still gasping as it drowned in the air.  “We’ve got Luke’s creel if—if you want to keep him.”

“‘Him,’” Poe said miserably.  Ben stifled a sigh and glared at the boner-killer of a fish.

“We can also throw him back,” he pointed out, and Poe’s tense body relaxed against him.

“Yeah!  Yeah, let’s do that.  I don’t even really like fish, to eat I mean,” Poe babbled.  “Uh, but. . . how do we get him off the hook?”  Ben glared at the fish even harder and sort of wished he hadn’t suggested sparing its life, but then he pulled away from Poe enough to reach down and scoop the slimy, wriggly fish up in one hand.  He fumbled with it until he got the hook out of its mouth, then tossed it back into the water.

As the fish swam away as fast as its fins could carry it, Poe sighed with relief and thanked Ben a second time.  Ben muttered, “No problem,” and dug around in the boat for the hand sanitizer he’d brought along.  After he’d de-fished his hands, he glanced at Poe, then found his eyes held by a warm, golden-brown pair looking at him from under half-lowered lids and a fringe of lush black lashes.  A delicious tense feeling rippled down from Ben’s heart to his groin.

“Maybe you should put your arms back around me,” murmured Poe, “and help me hold my—uh, the fishing pole.”  He flushed slightly at the double entendre he’d almost made by accident, but then he smiled again.

“Okay,” Ben whispered back.  He moved close to Poe again and wrapped the other boy’s small, warm body in his long arms with his hands resting against the soft t-shirt covering Poe’s flat stomach.  Poe did still have the fishing rod in front of him, the end stuck under one thigh to keep it from toppling into the water, but he covered Ben’s hands with his instead of bothering to cast his line again.  Ben nuzzled Poe’s ear again, then his cheek, then his neck.  Poe shuddered and tugged Ben’s hands down lower.

\--

When Ben and Poe came in off the lake, they appeared slightly rumpled (even for having hauled the boat back up onto the trailer), and Poe was blushing.  Wedge gave them a critical look, but Poe’s little brother spoke up before he could say anything.

“ _Finally!_ ” B.B. cried, jumping off the slide and running over to the teenagers.  “What’d you catch, Poe?”  He stopped, studied their empty hands, and protested, “Didn’t you catch _any_ fish?”

Poe’s blush deepened, and Wedge was surprised to see even Ben’s cheeks turning a faint pink.

“Yeah, of course we did,” Ben grumbled.  He stalked past B.B. and headed back towards Luke’s dually pickup truck, off to the right of where Wedge and Luke sat on the swings.  “Poe just wanted to throw them all back, ‘cos he’s a wuss.”

“Oh come _on_ ,” Poe groaned, although he was smiling as he ran to catch up with Ben and grabbed his hand to stop him.  “You didn’t want to kill them either, so don’t act like you’re so tough.  You didn’t even like _touching_ them.”

B.B. scowled and declared, “Hmph, you’re both sissies.”

“Well, what would _you_ want to do with a fish you just caught?” chuckled Poe.  “Wouldn’t you let it go?”

“ _No._ ”  B.B. followed them and glared up at his brother with a defiant look.  “I’d kill my catch, and then I’d _eat_ it.”  As the boy stomped off toward the truck, Wedge was almost certain he heard Ben mutter something about eating _his_ catch later, and he _was_ certain that Poe’s cheeks turned redder than ever.  Wedge knew Luke would be embarrassed at hearing his nephew say something like that, so when the teenagers followed B.B. to the truck, Wedge tried to change the subject.

“That little kid is savage,” he observed, but when he glanced at Luke, the fair-haired man’s face was flushed.  Wedge sighed, albeit fondly, and murmured, “Luke, they’re teenagers.  You had to know they’ve been fooling around.”

“Hunh?  Oh. . . yeah, no.  It’s not that,” Luke mumbled.  Wedge raised an eyebrow.

“Then why are you blushing?”

“Uh, I was just. . . thinking about something.”  Luke looked at his husband, saw his expectant expression, and explained a bit shyly, “Remembering that first time you and I took Dad’s boat out, the summer after we graduated.”

“Oh.  Yeah.”  Wedge smiled.  He too remembered that day well: he’d gone out on the lake with his best friend since middle school, and come back in with his first, and last, boyfriend.  “Now that I think about it, I guess we didn’t catch any fish either.  Didn’t your dad say our bait wasn’t good enough?”

“I dunno,” said Luke with a shrug.  “I seem to remember you dangling some pretty tempting bait. . . and having a _very_ nice rod.”

Wedge just stared at his husband with his mouth hanging open a moment before he was able to get his voice to work.  Luke’s face may have had a lot more lines, and his hair may have had as much grey in it now as blond, but his blue eyes were sparkling exactly as they had that day so many years ago.

“Luke Amidala Skywalker-Antilles,” Wedge finally breathed.  “I’m surprised at you.”

Luke sucked in his cheeks and made a fish face at him.

Just then, Ben bellowed from over by the truck, “For God’s sake, are you two coming?  You said you’d take us out to eat, and we’re _hungry!_ ”

“Yeah, we’re coming,” Luke called.  He hopped out of the swing and started for the truck, then paused to wait for Wedge.  Wedge got up too, took his husband’s hand, and let the best catch of his life lead him away.

\--

The End


End file.
